HR 8h Twins Go To The Harper Hall
by slytherinsal
Summary: While Jessenia and Carya stand for Impression, Carya's twin sisters go to the Harper Hall, which is for the first time welcoming female apprentices in the general intake. The friends the young acrobat twins make become leaders amongst the apprentices with some unexpected shakeups. Meanwhile, Meeri decides to 'come out' as a woman, causing a lot of shock to some people!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1 **

"Of course, you know WHY we're good enough to get to go to the Harper Hall, don't you, twin?" said Raisa.

"Yes," replied Ranya, her sister. "But Pa is still our Pa, even if we were incidentally sired by Journeyman Dacky; and he's named us well enough for himself and acknowledged us always."

Holder Ranyer made no distinction between any of the children of his late wife – or, for that matter, his children by his mistress – despite the obvious resemblance between the twins and the Hold Harper.

"It's the red hair and oversized ears," sighed Raissa, "though at least we can hide the ears with enough hair."

"Reckon Carissa must have been daft," said Ranya, with tolerant contempt towards the birth mother the twins had no recollection of. "I love Mother Relda better than someone silly enough to play fast and loose with any man SO different in colouring to Pa, well, why she would want to have an affair at all beats me."

Holder Ranyer had a very dark complexion and curly black hair; and whilst his wife had been lighter skinned, with reddish lights in her dark hair, the difference was very apparent!

"Well, we inherited the music as well as the ears, and we get to be with music; and that's good," said Raissa. "And if we don't make the grade as Harpers, we can go to Igen Weyr early and hope to Impress Green dragons like Carya has, rather than going as Journeymen to start a Harperweyr there too."

Carya, one of their older sisters, had gone to Igen Weyr to await a clutch, being close friends with their cousin of courtesy, Jessenia. Jessenia was the niece of their effective stepmother, Relda, and she was famously dragon-mad. Relda's family were acrobats, and Relda had initially joined Ranyer's family in order to train his children to be fit and supple. When Carissa had died, Relda had taken on the role of foster mother to her children, and in due course had proceeded to present the Holder with a further five children on top of his extant seven – if one counted the twins. And as Ranyer most certainly counted the twins, and had forgiven his wife her little lapse, nobody else was about to comment, at least not directly. There was no question at all that they had the choice to attend the Harper Hall, based on their talent and love for music, and were not embarrassments to be sent away. That the Harper Hall was now openly accepting female apprentices had come, the twins considered, at just the right time!

oOoOo

It was kind of Bronze Rider V'sheren to give the twins a lift to the Harper Hall on his still limping, Threadscored dragon, Asreth; and the little girls thanked both man and dragon prettily, vaulting off athletically, to avoid paining any of the dragon's scars.

"Reckon he's sweet on Cousin Jess," giggled Ranya, when Asreth had taken off, "his voice goes all soft when he talks about her!"

"Reckon you're not wrong, twin," agreed Raissa. "Who's this coming? Oh, he's important, he's a Journeyman, we should be very polite 'cos we're nobody here!"

The Journeyman had come hurrying to see what a Bronze Rider had wanted – and amended that to help anyone who was important enough to rate a lift from a Bronze Rider. He saw two identical little girls with large carisacs wearing the knots of direct line, minor hold.

"Ladies!" he said, nonplussed that they seemed rather young.

Raissa giggled.

"How do you do, sir?" she said. "We've come to study; please, where ought we to go? It's awf'ly cold here."

The twins were starting to shiver; the winters of Fort were considerably colder than the more southerly Southern Telgar from whence they hailed, and their flying gear had been borrowed.

"Come with me," said the Journeyman, "I'll see if I can find any apprentices to carry your bags."

"Oh, they're not heavy, sir!" said Raissa. "Just because we're girls doesn't mean we're FEEBLE, you know!"

He gave a strained smile, and made a half-hearted attempt to take the bags. This offended Ranya's and Raissa's sense of What Was Right, when they were only apprentices, and they held on to them.

The Journeyman led them round the side of the big, imposing Harper Hall building to a cot built against a ramp that led up towards the ancient Fort Hold. He knocked.

A fat, bad-tempered looking woman opened the door.

"Two for you, Dunca," the Journeyman said, politely.

The woman took in their knots and smiled ingratiatingly.

"What are your names, my dears?" she asked. "You seem rather young!"

"Oh no, we are turned twelve!" said Raissa. "I'm Raissa, and my twin is Ranya."

The woman frowned and consulted a list.

"I don't seem to have you down," she said. "I have enough names to fill the cot, but not you."

The twins exchanged a look of consternation.

"Pa's efficient," said Ranya, firmly and with faith. "He WILL have sorted it."

"Yes," said Raissa, "He said he had enrolled us as apprentices, so we MUST be somewhere. Is there anywhere else apprentices live, then, Dunca?" she asked hopefully. It was, after all, a rather SMALL cot to accommodate all the apprentices who must be here.

Dunca's face changed; it became quite malevolent.

"APPRENTICES?" she hissed, "I don't have apprentices! I have paying students, REAL ladies, not those who betray their blood with trade!"

The twins retreated before her fury.

"Then I guess we're sorry the Journeyman mistook us for real useless ornaments," said Raissa, who felt that if a grown-up was rude first it was in order to retaliate in kind. "We'll go and see if we can find anyone who knows about real things," and they beat a hasty retreat.

"Horrid old bovine!" said Ranya, when they were out of earshot.

"I'll say! I say, there's a jolly-looking apprentice there, let's ask him!" said Raissa.

The jolly looking apprentice wore senior tassels on his knots, and had curly black hair in an untidy mop around his head.

"Are you Raissa and Ranya?" he demanded.

Two red heads nodded emphatically.

"Good; I'm Meeri. I'm a female apprentice from the time when we didn't make an issue of it; you'll be in my dormitory. Follow me, and walk sharp, you'll need to stay warm until you can get better boots. WHAT was the Bronze Rider thinking of, letting you come _Between_ in thin ones like that and no flying gear?"

"They do have wherry down in them, Meeri, honest," said Raisa, "only our over-trews and jackets were borrowed from weyrlings and had to go back, so we are chilly. We got thicker clothes to come here, but we couldn't guess HOW cold it was really going to be! And snow staying on the ground, too!" she marvelled.

"Be pleased you're not at High Reaches," said Meeri, "where I hail from! You may as well know, I've dragonrider kin, someone will mention it."

"Oh, our sister and cousins are standing at Igen," said Ranya, earnestly.

"Oh, it's true then, that G'narish has opened his Greens to girls? Excellent," approved Meeri. "One of my cousins is a female Green Rider; she's also a Harper. You might get Searched by High Reaches for their Harperweyr if it does run in the family. C'mon, up here!" and she led them quickly to their dormitory, which was presided over by the elegant, dignified girl identified by Meeri as Dorasha.

oOo

Meeri soon found apprentice knots for the twins.

"Save any more misunderstandings," she said. "I didn't manage to intercept the Journeyman before he jumped to conclusions over your Rank knots and being brought on a Bronze. I was expecting you; because I was told off to look out for two flame-headed imps."

The twins grinned.

"Who was that horrid woman, Dunca, and why was she so nasty about us being apprentices?" asked Ranya.

"Oh, Dunca's a snob," said Meeri. "She houses paying students – Ranking girls whose folks pay for a little knowledge over a turn, just to make pretty tunes. Pretty idiots who don't take it seriously. Though in fairness," she added, "some come for love of music because they COULDN'T be apprentices, like Varalie, now V'lie, who's half competent and perhaps might have made it to Journeyman if there wasn't the prejudices. Dorasha too, 'cos of being mucked about with by her idiot Hold Harper, who couldn't figure out that she was left handed and adapt to teach her back about face. Only SHE escaped in with the real apprentices after H'gey – Journeyman Horgey as he was then – managed to show her how to do it left-handed. Dorasha is in the dorm with us, and so's Irette; come purposely to apprenticeship, she has a good voice and is a bit silly, but no real trouble."

"Are there many others to come? Girls I mean?" asked Raissa.

"Another four this Turn," said Meeri, "and the Hall extended too, so it doesn't mean dropping the number of boys. And at some point, my Cousin T'arla and her friend M'ia will come to confirm as Journeymen: there's a mini weyr with teaching room that H'gey used when he unexpectedly Impressed up at Fort Weyr. It's a long story, and one for a cold Winter evening. I'll show you around, and when all the apprentices have arrived, you'll gather in the Great Hall to get your timetable for the turn. You must just learn to endure Master Morshal: he's dour and sour and no-one can please him. He'll expect girls to giggle and fail. Please disappoint him. You have to pass his basic music craft class before you may drop his classes and specialise with another Master. Work hard. Work with other apprentices to bring each other on. Try not to get into too much trouble, and we're all tired of the pasta-dyed-grey to look like Thread trick. It's been done too often. Avoid irritating Drummaster Olodkey if you should cross his path; he has a nasty tempter, but apprentices not specialising in his classes should not have to worry. Do you know about periods, and do you have sanitary stuff?" she added abruptly.

They nodded.

"Yes," said Raissa.

"And yes," added Ranya.

"Good; I think that's all. Now follow me if you've unpacked; YOU may as well see where all the teaching halls are. It's the advantage those who get here early have over the rest; guided tours by those of us who don't go home for holidays."

The twins exchanged looks.

This Thread trick might be sad here, but come the holidays at home… and maybe here, they were not used to twin tricks! There was a lot of scope for imagination!

oOoOo

After a quick guided tour, the twins were left to their own devices 'to explore, settle in, and get into whatever trouble you mean to,' as Meeri said.

They were accosted by a tall, sallow boy with a shock of dark brown hair as they set off.

"I say, are you to be new apprentices?" he demanded.

The twins regarded him thoughtfully.

"Yes," said Raissa.

"Oh good! So am I! I'm Belenar; my dad works with Master Arnor, the Scrivener, and my mother cooks. You two look fun!"

"We're twins," said Raissa, "and that means born to have fun. I'm Raissa, and my twin is Ranya. We're from Southern Telgar."

"You came on the Bronze Dragon, didn't you?" Belenar asked, his nose positively twitching with curiosity.

"V'sheren is sweet on our cousin; she and our sister are candidates," said Ranya. Raissa frowned slightly; that was giving away a lot of information for little in exchange.

"Great Shells! They're brave, then!" said Belenar, admiringly. "I mean, one respects dragons and dragonmen without wanting to necessarily have anything to do with them."

The twins exchanged another look.

He seemed a little strange, but then some people were nervous of dragons; they had been told this.

"We suppose music is more important to you than dragons?" asked Raissa, politely.

"Oh, yes! And to have the chance to apprentice and not grow up to drudge is great!" enthused Belenar. "And to get to have fun and play tricks like the other apprentices – like Vaek for example, he's famous for his tricks!" added Belenar, awed.

"Pasta dyed grey as Thread, by any chance?" asked Raissa.

"Yes! I helped make that when I was smaller, because of having the run of the kitchens," said Belenar. "How did you know?"

"Some exploits just get about, I guess," said Ranya, "'cos we've been expressly forbidden to repeat that one as too boring."

"Pity; I heard it really makes people jump when they see it first and think it's Thread," said Belenar.

"We have our own original ideas anyway," said Raissa, firmly.

"I bet you're often in trouble where you come from. What's your father do?" asked Belenar.

"Loads… he works very hard, 'cos he's the Holder and there are always jobs to get on with. But he finds time to play with us in the evening," said Ranya.

Belenar did a double take.

"You – you're RANKING?" he gasped. "And real apprentices, not stuck in with Dunca?"

"We're apprentices and Pa said if he finds out we've thrown Rank around he'll tan our jackets," said Raissa. "only you did ask…."

"Cuh!" said Belenar. "Well, anyway, I reckon we could all get up to plenty."

The twins preferred to reserve judgement.

They were used to being sufficient unto each other; and though half the fun of being apprentices was to be with other youngsters, they liked to choose their own friends. And as both planned to follow Carya to the Weyr one day – and to Igen to set up their own Harperweyr, whatever Meeri might suggest about High Reaches – a boy who was at best lukewarm about dragons was not necessarily a kindred spirit, be he never so good at pranks!

oOoOo

Back in their dormitory, there were two more girls the twins had not yet met; an older girl who nodded to them. She must be the girl Irette, mentioned by Meeri in passing; she seemed on reasonable terms with Dorasha, which confirmed them as knowing each other.

The other girl was taller than either of the older girls, though plainly no older than the twins, being as flat-chested as they; and she had big brown eyes, which gazed at them hopefully from a pale face surrounded by a cloud of dense black hair.

"Hello," she said, "I just got here; my name's Shivanny."

The twins introduced themselves.

"I bet you cause mayhem through being identical," said Shivanny, appreciatively.

The twins grinned confirmation. She had a lot more appreciation of the realities of life than the optimistic would-be prankster they had just been talking to!

"Well, as you're early too, we can get to know each other a bit better," said Raissa.

Shivanny smiled sunnily.

"I'd like that," she said, "I've never had friends before who could understand why I want to whistle and sing and hum all the time; my father tells me off for making a row, but it can't be so much of a row, can it, or I'd not have been accepted as an apprentice? Anyway, Lady Benoria heard me whistling and asked my parents if I was to apprentice here!"

"Reckon Lord Groghe's wife ought to know if you're tuneful or not, living on top of the Harper Hall at Fort Hold," said Ranya, pleased to remember all she had mugged up about the notables at Fort.

"Well, I passed the test, to my parents' surprise. I did TRY to take an interest in cooking and bakery, but I am most awfully pleased to be let off and allowed to make music instead," said Shivanny.

"Your parents are cooks?" asked Raissa.

"Father's a senior journeyman and mother is a journeyman too in the Bakercraft. It's not such an official Hall as some crafts, but Fort Hold is the centre of Bakercraft. And I guess I like eating nice things, but I'm not so keen on preparing them. When you've filled four thousand and more bubbly pies, you don't feel like eating them any more," she sighed.

The twins were aghast!

It seemed to them to be cruel and unusual punishment to make someone go off wanting bubbly pies!

Every sympathy went out to Shivanny.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Boys started returning, or arriving for the first time in some cases, in twos and threes, usually brought in by traders' trains; it was worth the while for many traders to come in early for the New Turn Gather, having bargained for a contract to reprovision the Harper Hall too, for the new turn. They must perforce arrive before the new turn's study began, and were a safe way to deliver youths. For the protection of their offspring, many parents who were within visiting distance for the holiday were happy to lose a day or two with their son to be ready whenever the traders passed by, and to pay a small sum to the traders to care for a youngster returning to his studies. A train that came regularly up from Southern Boll, with bolts of Harper Blue cloth, collected a whole fair of youngsters from various waypoints as they travelled.

Those with wealthy or well-connected parents might return on dragonback, often right at the last minute; plenty of boys from further afield without such connections were, in fact, left in the Hall, unable to see their parents without a leave of absence on compassionate grounds and transport arranged until such time as they became Journeymen. Some fortunates amongst these might be invited to the homes of friends who lived closer, but for many boys, the separation from family was complete. Most other crafts had, at least, more craft halls for initial training in more regions, and the Master Harper hoped to see more Harper Halls grow too, but for now, it ensured that those who attended were mostly those willing to dedicate their lives to music as fully half the apprentices must spend their time in the Hall over the holiday.

Some of these, like Irette, had sought music against the wishes of their parents, and had no home to go to; and from remarks overheard, the twins gleaned the information that Meeri's own father was opposed to Harpers and Harping, though she had other family at High Reaches Weyr. Dorasha had visited her own home; she was very fond of both her parents, and of her uncle, the Holder of the small Seahold from whence she hailed. She had been given a lift dragonback to see her family, and had returned early purely to finish a harp she was crafting for sale, hoping to complete it before the Gather. Dorasha loved her life at the Harper Hall, and worked hard, as hard as her Masters permitted. She had something to prove, after all, to the hidebound Harper who had not noticed – or had chosen to ignore – her lefthandedness and had prepared her but badly!

The twins also came into contact with the notorious Vaek, who was craftbred in the Harper Hall in any case; he and a couple of friends were busy making apple pie beds for all the new boys expected, by way of welcome.

"And nothing nasty in the bottom of them either," he said, injured, when Meeri asked what on Pern they were up to, having caught up with the twins in the spirit of checking what THEY were up to.

"Poor little sprouts!" said Meeri, "Away from home for the first time, and some of them never having encountered tricks in their lives. Why don't you just fill Master Oldokey's boots with cornflour mix instead?"

"'Cos he's on the lookout since you pulled so many japes on him, and I don't relish his drumsticks across my back," said Vaek. "Yeah, you're right; some kids do get real homesick. We'll do all the Journeymen who've been on holiday instead."

"MUCH better," approved Meeri.

The twins exchanged looks.

There were definitely unwritten rules about playing tricks so as not to bully the vulnerable with them; and from the way Vaek had flushed he hated the thought of bullying.

The twins took due note.

They also took note that the two Journeymen – both very young – who returned early and were the first caught by Vaek's jape proceeded to manhandle the three boys responsible into the bathing room, where, judging by the splashes and giggling yells, they were well ducked in retribution and that the punishment was both unofficial and taken in good part.

Vaek's blonde curls were limp and bedraggled for a few hours; and he cheerfully ran errands for the journeyman – a young man named Ferry – who had been one of the journeymen administering the ducking.

oOoOo

The next girl to arrive came on a fine runnerbeast, accompanied by a boy the same sort of age, and a smart groom who helped them both – though mostly the girl – with their carisacs. The girl had red-brown hair; the boy was ginger. Both were freckled.

The twins grinned at each other on seeing them out of the window; and pelted down to the arch, where one concealed herself at each side.

Ranya popped out to the right.

"Hello!" she said, and dodged back.

"Nice to meet you!" Raissa popped out the other side, and dodged back.

"What…..?" said the girl.

"Twins – I bet, twins!" said the boy. "hey, flame-tops, come out together!"

The twins emerged, grinning.

"GINGER!" they shouted.

"Ginger yourself," retorted the boy.

"Are you brother and sister?" asked Ranya.

The newcomers shook their heads.

"He's my milk brother," said the girl, who had Ranking knots, "and contrary to the pop'lar myth we're best friends and we both love music, so as they opened it to girls, I pestered my father and uncle to let me go with Miax. Sure, and they was willing enough, so they were."

"We're Raissa and Ranya, and we're Ranking like you but you better lose the knots, 'cos they don't like it being mentioned hers 'cos we're all scrubby apprentices," said Raissa all in one breath.

"Oh, it's mostly to stop incidental brigands tangling with us, because they can see we'd only bring them trouble," said the girl. "I'm Teerima; and this is Miax. We love music and runnerbeasts and dragons; for we're Ruathan bred."

"We should all get on just fine, then," said Raissa, "we keep runnerbeasts at our Hold, mostly to herd cattle, but we love music and dragons, and we've two cousins and a sister standing for Impression at Igen Weyr."

"We should form a – a league of gingers!" said Miax, grinning.

"She's not really ginger," said Raissa, nodding at Teerima.

"Well, you're both redder than ginger for that message," said Teerima. "How about it? We work together and only let red-heads in, or those with red in their hair…"

"Y – ees," said Raissa, "though there's another girl who's pretty decent, and she has black hair. We could maybe declare her an honorary red-head?"

"That defeats the purpose of red against all," objected Miax.

"Why not hold judgement until you meet her," suggested Ranya. "Anyway, we might just as well form a league of girls against boys, and we'd not stop you being an honorary girl because of being close to Teerima."

Miax shrugged and grinned.

"I think I've got too much equipment to be a girl," he said, making his voice squeak in falsetto.

"Idiot," said Teerima, amicably. "Where do we go?"

The twins quickly showed the pair to their respective dormitories and introduced Shivanny, explaining in stereo about the cruelty of grownups to make her not like bubbly pie.

It won the sympathy of Miax; and Shivanny was declared, with due ceremony, to be an honorary red-head.

oOoOo

"Two girls down, two yet to come," said Raissa. "I wonder what they'll be like?"

"Won't know 'til they get here, twin," said Ranya, equably.

oOoOo

The final two arrived together; and on dragonback. The red-headed league followed Meeri out as she went to greet the newcomers.

"You're Iphedeth's Rider, aren't you?" the young Harper said to the Rider.

Ch'sseri grinned.

"And you're Meeri… good to meet fellow logicators in other places. Petiana here is Weyrbred; she's got a great voice, I've been noticing it for turns. Not many little'uns can hold a tune from five turns and before. And Menorial I heard singing when I was doing a low sweep to check for burrows; seemed like a good idea to introduce them."

The red haired league exchanged looks in their lurking place inside the arch.

"And they're BOTH red-heads!" said Miax, in satisfaction as the passengers disrobed from some of their wraps.

As the girls dismounted, it became apparent that the girl Menorial was tiny; her hair was more chestnut than red, but it was, said Raissa, close enough. Petiana, the weyrbred girl, was redder of hair even than the twins, and hers was curly too, rather than just wavy. Her complexion was perfect, and her eyes were big and brown.

"Either she's going to be a stuck up vain wherry-kite, or not be aware how pretty she is," muttered Ranya. "shall we do the twin thing again?"

"What about us?" demanded Miax.

"You can leap out and shout 'GINGER' after we do our stuff," said Raissa. "I think they both look too jolly to be stuck up; we'll see how they react to us."

Meeri rolled her eyes up as she conducted the newcomers into the courtyard as first one, and then the other, twin leaped out to say her piece; and sighed when five children leaped out shouting loudly,

"GINGER!"

Petiana was laughing.

Menorial raised an eyebrow.

"Is that some kind of craft ritual?" she demanded.

"We are the secret red-headed league and we have come to collect your scalps!" said Miax.

Menorial stared fixedly at Shivanny's black mop.

"She's a red-head in her SOUL," explained Raissa. "Besides, we were already friends with her when these two turned up. Are you willing to swear undying loyalty to the other red-heads here?"

"Why not?" said Petiana. "it sounds as fun a way to make friends as any. Though I do want to work hard too, you know, and so does Menorial."

"Oh, so do we all," said Raissa, "Meeri here explained that self-help groups do better, and we thought we could be a self-help group as well as having fun."

"We could dye, er, your friend's hair too if she likes," said Petiana, "one of the lower cavern women does and I watched. She's jealous of my mother for being naturally red, like F'lar's mother was."

"I'm Shivanny," said Shivanny. "will it wash out?"

"Dunno. I guess if you just red up the highlights it will, but if you bleach it and dye it, it won't come out."

"Children! NO permanent hair changes, if you please!" said Meeri. "Shivanny, your hair is lovely, don't muck with it. I'm sure Petiana meant well, but I think it's an unwise experiment."

Shivanny brightened.

She would have gone along with the plan for her new friends, but was happy NOT to touch her crowning glory.

"I think the idea of a self-help group that has fun too is good," said Menorial. "I think it would be nice."

And two more members were enrolled to the red-haired league!

oOoOo

No other red-heads turned up; there were a few boys who might prove interesting, and Miax was given the go-ahead to declare any close friend he might make as an honorary red-head like Shivanny.

Miax got picked on at first by some boys who thought him a sissy for going around with six girls; but Miax had learned to fight on his milk-sister's behalf early on. He was also helped out by a boy called Yanal from mid Tillek, who was big boned as well as tall, and looked like nothing so much as a ploughboy, as Miax told the girls, with nondescript blonde hair and a ruddy face and hands like hams. That Yanal had the most beautiful voice and could tell excellent stories right out of his own head came as a surprise; and the other boys were happy to seek his friendship! Miax won it for defending his milk-sister and friends, for Yanal was a boy with a strong romantic streak, and he was promptly enrolled in the red-headed league.

"Anyway, his face is red, which is close enough," said Raissa.

"Ar, my da and my granfer have beards and they grow red," said Yanal. "reckon that'd count?" the idea of belonging to a secret society appealed to him greatly.

"Oh, it most certainly counts!" said Petiana, quickly; and the others nodded.

"He'll likely have red hair in a few turns time, only on his chin," giggled Ranya.

oOoOo

The boy Belenar may have been a little disappointed to have been left out of the red-haired league, but soon joined up with another group of cronies, run jointly by two lads. One was the son of a Journeyman Harper, based in Nabol, named Tassend, a big-built lad, though not on the same scale as Yanal, whose dynamism and charisma drew other boys to him. The other was Alamarn, a short, cheeky lad whose brown hair stood constantly on end, and whose imagination for mischief seemed boundless. With Belenar to join the, this precious pair also talked a lad called Tarney into throwing in his lot with them. Tarney was the only other apprentice with pretensions to Rank, being a nephew of Lord Larad of Telgar by one of the vast brood of half-bloods the Lord Holder's father had sired. Tarney was too tall and skinny to be as good looking as his black hair, grey eyes and creamy skin might promise; and he was not, as Raissa estimated, the sharpest stick in the bundle. However, he was amiable and good humoured and genuinely pleased to be invited into a group of boys.

"Huh," said Petiana, "That gang of four are bent on setting up the Masters' backs with wild tricks and mischief; I vote we go out of our way to help others instead."

"Not Masters!" said Shivanny, in lively horror, "they'll think we're sucking up!"

"Oh, no, of course not, they don't need any help anyway," said Petiana, "but help other apprentices, if we've figured out how to do stuff and they haven't – extend the self-help group without inviting them to join the league."

"Seems good," said Raissa, "People who are good at things ought to help those that aren't, and from what I've overheard, we're tunnels ahead of lots of the boys."

"It's doing what dragonriders would do," said Yanal. "Protect and serve."

"Yes," said Petiana. "well, they're supposed to… some are better at it than others."

The twins exchanged a startled look with the Ruathans and Yanal.

"I think," said Shivanny, "we should keep an eye on the four festering frolickers, and if any of their mischief comes close to bullying, we should pay them back for it in their own kind, 'cos the people they upset won't be half likely to be able to."

"I SAID she was a red-head at heart," declared Raissa, delighted. "That's an excellent idea!"

"Reckon we can actually catch them out?" asked Menorial, cynically.

Teerima snorted.

"Six girls and the two best boys of the turn? 'course we can!" she asseverated!

oOoOo

The chance to start a feud with the four friends came before lessons even started formally.

Miax and Yanal met up with the girls; and they were fuming.

"Those porcines really ARE bullying!" said Miax, "Alamarn had heard that if you put a sleeping fellow's hand in warm water they pee the bed… they did it to Baris, he's a gentle kid, no harm to anyone, and he was really upset!"

"We helped him get clean sheets and things and told the Headwoman it wasn't his fault," said Yanal. "Obviously we didn't SNEAK about whose fault it was, but we told her we'd sort out who did it, and she just nodded."

"Silvina's good," said Shivanny, "I've heard people at Fort Hold talk of her."

"We tackled them fair about it, and they just said it was a piece of fun!" said Miax, scornfully, "and I said, if they thought it was fun to embarrass another chap who hadn't harmed them, and try to get him in trouble, then that was poor fun and not – not in the tradition of the Harper Hall, and they called us poor-spirited and spoil-sports. Reckon Tarney felt guilty, though," he added, brightening, "he looked glum and he apologised to Baris."

"We should feed them a diuretic and make them squirm through lessons," said Petiana.

"What's a – what you said?" demanded Raissa.

"A diuretic makes you pee a lot," said Petiana. "Weyrwomen have to take them 'cos _Between_ makes their waterworks not work so good."

"I like. Do you know what they look like, to get hold of?" asked Raissa.

"Get me into the infirmary and I can recognise the herbs," said Petiana. "I've helped brew them."

Yanal heroically ran a splinter into his finger as a distraction while Petiana grabbed herbs and the others milled around to hide her activity; then Yanal and Miax started a scuffle with Alamarn, Tassend and Belenar while the girls slipped their quickly brewed herb extract into the boys' klah.

As Tarney had apologised he did NOT get a dose of the medicine!

The apprentices hurried to their first class, theory with Master Morshall; some of them gloating gently.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The twins were certain that they had never before met anyone as unreasonable or irascible as Master Morshal.

He growled his distain of girl students and told them that he expected them to fail before they were even set any tasks; and glared at them.

The girls were too taken aback to protest; and exchanged quick looks that resigned themselves to realisation that it would do them no good in any case.

Raissa and Ranya found the initial exercises childishly simple. Journeyman Dacky had taught all the family well; and if he paid extra attention to the two he had probably sired, they had at least been the two best able to make us of his preparation, and had happily soaked up all that he could teach them. Menorial and Petiana had raw talent, and were quick to pick up sight-reading phrases despite less full preparation, and Teerima and Miax had been well trained as well as having considerable talent themselves. But only Tassend, as a Journeyman's son, had as much depth of training as Raissa and Ranya!

This training in Tassend's case was, however, offset by a growing look of discomfort and desperation; and Master Morshal's irritation over not being able to humiliate any of the little girls was added to by having three little boys wriggling in discomfort.

"If you three can't sit still, you had better stand!" he snapped.

The seven plotters actually felt some sympathy at that point; that HAD to be worse.

"Please, sir, may I use the necessary?" said Tassend.

"No, you may not! You should have gone before you came to class!" snapped Morshal.

There was a shared look of despair, and the red-haired league wondered if they should confess right now.

Petiana stood up

"Please, sir, there may have been a mix up; I was asked to take some diuretic klah to the Healer Hall, and if I picked up the wrong mugs, those boys might have got a dose," she temporised hastily.

Morshal glared at her.

"Just as careless as I'd expect of a girl!" he growled, and glowered at the three scarlet-faced boys. "Very well, use the necessary; be quick!"

They fled; and returned later meekly and a lot more comfortable.

After the class – and another trip to the necessary – the three, with Tarney tagging along, descended on Petiana.

"What was that about?" demanded Alamarn, furiously.

The red-heads arranged themselves behind Petiana.

"You bullied Baris. WE made it our business to show you what it is to be uncomfortable and embarrassed," said Petiana, sweetly. "Jokes are fine in their place; but if you bully other apprentices, we'll make it our business to bully you back."

"It wasn't bullying!" said Alamarn.

"We thought it would be funny!" said Tassend.

"And it was," said Belenar.

"So was watching you squirm," said Petiana. "Huh, if you can't see it, I wish I'd let you pee your pants instead of getting sorry for you and taking his wrath."

The three exchanged looks.

"Thanks for speaking up," said Tassend, gruffly. "And for standing him calling you down. I – I guess it wasn't funny for us – and I s'pose it wasn't funny for Baris."

"Why not me?" asked Tarney.

"'Cos you realised you'd been unkind and you apologised," said Miax, "'Cos you're a man to accept you did bad."

Tarney looked pleased.

"We didn't MEAN any harm," said Alamarn.

"Well, do think next time if someone could get really upset," said Raissa, "and Silvina could've got in an awful bate about Baris being supposedly dirty. Why don't you pick on real bullies another time, or make jokes that everyone can enjoy? I bet Vaek wouldn't have approved of your first trick," she added, mostly to Belenar.

"We'd not want to bully anyone," said Tassend. "It was a mistake."

"Good," said Teerima, "so go apologise to Baris."

oOoOo

"Reckon they've learned not to bully?" asked Raissa.

"Reckon they have," said Yanal. "When you have a big family, you get hazed and teased and you learn how to laugh at yourself; and you learn what's not acceptable. Reckon they don't have large families or a lot of kids in their dormitories in their Holds, so they don't know how much they can hurt people."

"Yes," agreed Raissa, "Ranya and me have been slippered for going past what was all right."

"Not that we MEANT to set fire to Carra's hair," said Ranya, "only to singe it a bit frizzy at the ends to show her up for being so vain. It sort of got out of hand."

"Fire often does," said Shivanny. "I threw a load of sticks on the fire once because I was impatient about the cakes cooking, or not, as you might say, and the sticks weren't dry and the place was that filled with smoke and smuts, nothing was edible! Oh I got a good whipping for that, and I hadn't even meant mischief!"

"Like mucking out stables by throwing buckets and buckets of water and flooding the whole courtyard and having to take three days to clear it up," said Miax, gloomily.

"Life always bites if you take short cuts," agreed Menorial.

oOoOo

Master Shonagar was delighted to have three fine sopranos amongst the new intake; and two of them unlikely to lose their voices to age. He fully endorsed the decision to take girls as apprentices, for having a full range of female voices could, in his opinion, only enhance the Harper Hall. And to date, though Dorasha had a pretty voice, and Irette a very fine one, and Meeri at least a well trained one, he had not had a girl he could truly enthuse over. Menorial and Petiana filled him with joy, and he demanded that they devote extra time to singing with a view to becoming special pupils.

"Please, sir, we want to try everything and decide what we'd do best specialling at," said Petiana with more earnest intent than grammar.

Menorial nodded.

"I want to craft instruments," she said, "I want to make instruments to best suit my voice."

"All very admirable," said Shonagar, "but it would be a crime to neglect your voices!"

"We can maybe cut wind instrument training?" suggested Petiana.

"Yes! Yes, you must; do not risk sore throats by blowing into tubes!" demanded Shonagar. "Boy, Yanal, isn't it? - your voice too is one of the best I have heard; surpassed by one or two, but there amongst the best. Will you devote yourself to voice training?"

"What would happen then when my voice breaks?" asked Yanal, with an unusual turn of practicality; he had a stubborn streak that would not be pushed by anyone.

"It will settle down into one of three voices: as fine an adult voice as your juvenile voice, the least likely of the three; an adequate voice somewhere between suitable for chorus singing and a fair soloist; or will end up sounding like a wherry farting. I don't ask you to stop other studies, though if you too will eschew wind instruments I will be better pleased!"

"I'm happy to do that, sir; my fingers are too big for most pipe holes anyway," said Yanal. "I made a gitar with a wide neck to use, but pipes matter how close the holes are."

"Quite," said Master Shonagar. "Very well, you three are excused wind instruments. And there are only two of you in the whole class who know how to breathe, and that's you two identical quavers at the front!"

The twins giggled.

There was nothing remarkable about their voices, good or bad; but they did know how to use them to the best advantage!

oOoOo

As the twins progressed through their various lessons, it became increasingly obvious that Teerima and Miax had been given a reasonable grounding by their Hold Harper, and that Petiana, and particularly Menorial, had received a very sketchy training and relied on sheer talent. Shivanny and Yanal were not so well prepared as the Ruathan pair; but were by no means behind.

"We need to bring the rest of you on," said Raissa, firmly, "and we all need to learn the drum progressions worked out by Journeyman T'rin. But we'll catch the rest of you up first, 'cos someone really left Menorial out to dry."

"I come from a tiny seahold on the coast of Benden," said Menorial in her silvery voice, "where music takes second if not third, fourth or fifth place. If we can sing the Duty Song and all the teaching ballads that's enough. I got some extra theory in the Weyr, but they don't exactly prepare you for an apprenticeship – not like Green Rider Ch'sseri says they do at High Reaches."

"Sure, and isn't High Reaches Weyr a law unto itself," said Teerima, "full of eccentrics, they say, and singing dragons too!"

"NICE!" said Raissa.

"If they hadn't been taking girls at the Harper Hall, Teerima and me were thinking of asking to go as candidates now we're just in age and join the Harperweyr," said Miax. "We can help people on to our level, you know; and you can catch us up the rest of the way, you twins."

Raissa nodded.

"You take Yanal; Teerima take Shivanny; and twin and I will take Menorial and Petiana," she said. "Individual help will work quickest. We'll be the bestest students ever and pay ol' Morshal back by us girls being better than any of the other boys!"

"Hear hear!" said Petiana, "and he thinks I'm careless because I lied for the three wrigglers so I guess I REALLY want to make him look stupid."

oOoOo

Extra work despite, there were things Menorial did not know; and Master Morshal delighted in leaping on a misunderstanding over notation.

"HOW long have you been studying musical notation, girl?" he asked sarcastically.

Menorial counted on her fingers.

"Five sevendays, sir," she said.

"Five sevendays? Don't be ridiculous! You can't learn musical notation in so short a time! Besides, at your age, you'll have been studying at least four turns with your Hold Harper."

"Sir, our Hold Harper only taught us to sing by rote," said Menorial, "I never even saw music written down until I was taken to the Weyr to prepare to come here."

"Nonsense!" said Master Morshal, "I hate liars! And girls lie more than any boy!"

Petiana jumped up.

"Sir, she is NOT lying! And you can ask the Weyrsinger and the Dragonrider who collected her if you will not take the word of a weyrbred."

"Sit down, girl, I don't need your cheek and nonsense; I don't believe a word!"

Ranya jumped up.

"Weyrwomen – including juvenile ones – DON'T lie!" she said.

Raissa jumped up.

"Menorial has done really well to catch up from nothing from her potty little seahold, but you can't give her credit for that, can you, Master? You're supposed to teach and bring on those who got left behind in inadequate Holds, but YOU CAN'T DO YOUR JOB!"

There was a shocked silence.

A quick look passed between Teerima and Miax; and the girl rose.

"You can't do your job," she said calmly.

Miax rose.

"You can't do your job," he echoed.

"You can't do your job," Yanal joined them.

There was a brief pause; and the eyes of the red-haired league flicked to the Gang of Four.

Tassend leaped to his feed.

"You can't do your job!" he said.

His three satellites followed; then the whole class were on their feet, chanting it, the loudest being those shy boys Morshal took most delight in picking on.

Master Morshal was frightened. He knew as well as anyone that when protests are screamed it was all sound and fury. It was when the tone dropped an octave that the mood was ugly.

The tone was as low as forty treble voices could be.

Raissa jumped on her chair and held up her hands for silence; and the chanting stopped.

"Sir," she said, "we respect the fact that you have the level of skill to be a Master; but how can we continue to respect you as a person if you do not impart knowledge to us and only carp at people instead of explaining things? The Charter states that those in authority in Craft, Hold or Weyr should not use that authority to terrorise or coerce those under them. We require you to remain within the Charter, sir."

Morshal's eyes bulged.

"How DARE you quote the Charter to me, girl?" he demanded.

"Sir, it is better to remind you of the Charter than to report you as a Charter breaker," said Raissa. "We have rights as well as responsibilities as apprentices and no Master may flout those rights."

"I take it I have the right to set punishment for your cheek, apprentice?" asked Morshal, sarcastically.

"Yes, sir; of course. But you do NOT have the right to question the word of someone never proven dishonest nor to bully Baris and Menorial and some of the others because they've not been well prepared. It's your duty to make up for that ill preparation," Raissa spoke fast to ensure that he could not interrupt.

"Water diet for a sevenday!" was all Morshal said.

"Sir, we ALL feel the same," said Tassend.

"Then a water diet for all who feel the same!" yelped Morshal; feeling relieved that the bell to end classes relieved him from an unpleasant situation.

oOoOo

At the noon meal, Masterharper Sebell glanced over and asked,

"Why are all the new intake on water rations?"

"Why not ask them?" growled Morshal.

"Very well," Sebell banged the table for silence. "Will a spokesman for the new intake tell me why you are all on water rations?"

Raissa rose, slightly ahead of Petiana, who ceded the task to her.

"Sir, because we will not let a fellow be called a liar without proof after catching up really fast after inadequate preparation. We know our rights under the Charter. We know our responsibilities too, and accept punishment for being forceful about putting our rights forward."

"I see," said Sebell.

Morshal was purple.

"That's the ringleader! Her cheek is incredible!" he yelped.

"She spoke respectfully enough," said Sebell. "I will take the class tomorrow, Morshal, and make my own assessment of them."

oOoOo

Sebell found a well-prepared class, some of them decidedly behind the others. They treated him with every respect, although plainly surprised to see him. Sebell also noticed the looks of wary determination slide off some faces at his appearance; and terror of others. After the initial part of the lesson, when he tested them, he said,

"Now I want the whole story of what happened yesterday."

Menorial rose.

"Sir, it started because I'd never seen dotted notes," she said, "and he asked me how long I'd been studying notation, so I told him!"

"And he called her a liar, and me too!" Said Petiana, furiously.

"One at a time. Raissa – it is Raissa, is it not? He called you ringleader. Will you explain?"

"Sir, it is as Menorial says," Raissa began; and then succinctly told the story.

Sebell nodded.

"I see," he said. "Well, in disrespecting a Master – any Master – you disrespect me, and the whole Harper Hall; so I am going to suggest that you write apologies to Master Morshal in lieu of your water punishment, which is not good for growing bodies and minds."

"But sir, it would be hypocrisy! We're NOT sorry!" said Raissa.

"No? Not for disrespecting me and the Hall? You may not be sorry to have made protest, but I am asking you to make apology for chanting so rudely. Explaining the position of the Charter should have been enough!" Sebell thought cynically to himself that Morshal would not have listened: but he HAD to uphold the Master's position.

Raissa considered.

"Sir, I think we can apologise for expressing ourselves childishly," she said, "but I would rather be expelled the Harper Hall than belong to a Hall that lets Harpers live lies."

Sebell hid a grin.

Cheeky monkeys who were earnest and honest needed to be kept under a firm eye!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Tassend rose.

"Sir, if we don't carry on with the water diet, it will still hang over our heads, because Master Morshal won't feel we've done the punishment set. I think we're better to continue with the punishment as set so it can't be brought back to us later."

Sebell stared.

"Do you respect him so little? And do you respect ME so little that you think my word to Master Morshal that I have modified your punishment will not be enough?"

"Sir, my father is a Harper who learned under Master Morshal. We hear the older apprentices talk. No-one respects him at all, or feels that he can even spell the word 'fair'. Those who are behind cannot learn for the fear he instils in them. We respect you, sir, but someone who cannot earn respect will not give it either, and he HAS been heard to say that so young a Masterharper is bound to be weak and useless."

Sebell was speechless.

He disliked Morshal himself; and he knew that the Master was universally loathed by his pupils; but there had never been so concerted a revolt before. Most classes had just accepted the unfairness of life and tried to do well enough to escape the basic classes as soon as possible. And in fairness, the Masterharper suddenly wondered whether potentially adequate Harpers had been lost for being behind technically when they joined, and fell more behind for sheer terror and the apathy that induced.

"I hear your words Tassend," he said, seeing too how the others were all nodding agreement to Tassend's words. "And I make you my promise that the matter for you all will be CLOSED with a written apology as your punishment. Unless anyone is so misguided as to write something along the lines of 'dear Master Morshal, I'm very sorry that you can't do your job' or any other such cheek," he added hastily. "I will read all your apologies first and you had better hope they do not need to be returned. I have here paper to write on. You will write them now, and if that makes you late to your next lesson, then that is unfortunate and you will accept punishment for that. The sooner you begin, the sooner you will finish," and with that he passed out paper.

Sebell felt that Tassend had a point; and though he knew that Morshal had reservations about him as Masterharper, it was a shock that the old Master had voiced them so as to be overheard and make his views common knowledge amongst even those apprentices who had only been there a few days. The boy was right; respect had to be earned, and, too, went both ways. They could not be expected to show respect for an authority who himself showed no respect for authority.

The class, unaware of the Masterharper's musings, wrote industriously; his word was good enough for them. If Master Morshal flouted the Masterharper they would then have legitimate grounds for complaint.

Most had finished by the time the bell went; the quicker ones rallying round to encourage the slower writers.

The grammatical construction and spelling – not to mention the handwriting – might not have been all that could be desired, but it was completed, and even the slower ones finished soon enough after the first bell to have a chance to take a drink of water or use the necessary, with help from their fellows. And that did lift Sebell's spirits, that this class was unified as a team.

The letters were to afford him some amusement later, for the twins had couched theirs in terms of sympathy that they had overtaxed the Master with their vehemence, which spurious sympathy was short of cheek by the merest whisker, and Teerima had written in tiny writing that the Master would strain to read in a long and florid apology that he would have to plough through laboriously, and Teerima able to claim virtuously that it left a big piece of precious paper to re-use as Master Arnor liked to do. Yanal's by contrast sprawled over both sides of the paper and then the boy had written his final apologetic periods crossways over the initial writing, again able to claim that he was saving paper as his big hands would not let him write smaller. Petiana had written hers so that the writing filled the shape of a stylised dragon and Menorial had set hers to a simple tune that Sebell took the time to note down in case Morshal destroyed it. As for the boy Tassend, he had produced a florid piece of calligraphy in the hand of a bygone age. Well, if most other letters ran along the lines of 'dear master Morshal,' – the m of Master almost universally left uncapitalised – 'I am sorry I was louder in protesting than what was proper' at least those couched in more Harper-like terms and adequate grammatical construction from the more able made up for the lack of literacy of some. Somehow, Sebell doubted that Morshal would appreciate how very able those efforts truly were; and he sighed.

oOoOo

The apprentices never knew what passed betweem Masterharper Sebell and Master Morshal; but Meeri told the girls,

"You kids have done what never occurred to the rest of us – use the Charter. Unofficially, well done, and if you gloat, I'll box your ears."

"Gloat about what?" demanded Raissa.

"Master Morshal is deemed too old to continue teaching; he is in need of a rest," said Meeri. "He's to have his own craft cot to study, and to write music if he so desires, without the interruptions of apprentices that have been, he has always claimed, why he has had such little output of composition. And none of you horrors had better bother him either, of I'll give you what for," she added hastily, in case any of them might want revenge by setting up practical jokes for their former tormentor.

"How did you find out?" asked Petiana, curiously.

"Vaek is a friend of mine. He's Pern's best eavesdropper," said Meeri.

It was true enough.

She did not tell these kids that she was, in fact, married to Master Domick, who had told her what he knew; and discussed with her how much to pass on unofficially to the youngsters! Meeri herself heartily detested Morshal, though she had tried to be sorry for him over his hatred of teaching often rather dim boys; but she knew now, from hearing comments the girls passed, that she would have fared worse in the short time she spent in his class had he KNOWN that she was a girl. He had made enough sarcastic comments about her being born Holdless; she knew he might even have refused to look at her work if he had known her gender too, so she would have received no credit at all.

Masterharper Sebell was right; the man was becoming a liability here as he became more embittered with age and with his unreasoning bigotry against girls! She had asked Domick,

"But I thought you had some girls in the old days – you said Master Robinton's mother was the Voice Master!"

"We had some; mostly Ranking, who had learned some music and had voices to develop," said Domick. "Even when I was a boy, we did not have girls really being full apprentices as you are. They were still given some deference for their sex, rarely younger than fifteen turns, and not expected, for example, to craft instruments. Rob always wanted to change that, especially once Menolly joined us; and Sebell's new tenure made it a good chance to do so. Other crafts, after all, do not differentiate."

"And no need to," said Meeri. "Can it be as simple as having girls in the class led to that revolt?"

"The girls unused to being treated so, and so willing to speak out, and the boys showing off that they could be strong and stick together to defend them, you mean? It might be," mused Domick. "I'm also inclined to think that there are four Ranking youngsters in that class, and Miax might as well be counted as such too; plus a Weyrbred into the bargain. Several kids there are used to being treated with respect, and are trained to be forceful enough to make their resentment plain that their treatment was not as they might expect."

Meeri nodded.

"That's true enough," she said. "And it could be a combination of both – the circumstances coming together to lead to a revolt. And WHAT a result! I gloat!"

"Privately only," Domick warned her.

"Of course, love. I'd not undermine the Hall by undermining that nasty old man's position. Though I'll chuckle to myself when his output of writing fails to improve for being away from the kids," she added meditatively. "You should kiss me for my detached virtue however," she added.

Which was the end of THAT conversation.

oOoOo

The beginners' class was to be taken by Journeyman Ferry for the time being. Master Menolly was good with the young ones; but her advanced state of pregnancy made life a little hard for her, and she was happy to cede the duty to a willing volunteer.

The twins liked the looks of their new instructor; his dark skin and dark brown hair and eyes reminded them of their brother Ranis. The unquenchable good humour in those eyes added to that impression!

"You kids are NOT going to find me a pushover," said Ferry. "I may not be as old as some Journeymen, but I earned my knots fair and square. And I'm not taken in by any feminine wiles either, so if any of you like to play on being girls, forget it. I was one of the boys who hid the identity of the Lady Kitiara, as she was then, when she cut her hair to join as apprentice Kit. She's Journeyman Green Rider K'iara now, and we're all proud of her for making her way as a boy. I'd like to be as proud of all you kids, boys and girls alike, and I think I will be. Any kids who can stick together for one of their number are a decent bunch; and I wager you can stick together too, to bring on those who are behind. Very well, which of you feel behind?"

Seven rather hesitant hands went up, including Menorial's.

Ferry nodded.

"Good; I'll test you all to see where you are. Any of you bored because the class is too easy ?"

The twins and Tassend raised their hands.

Ferry nodded again.

"Well, when I've assessed those who are left behind, you three can take a couple apiece and help them catch up; which will give you a lot of revision too, and also show some of you apprentices how difficult it can be to bite back comments that are less than charitable when people find it hard to see what you think is easy. We all have different areas of expertise; and different levels of training. Now, I'm going to write out a short passage of music for you all to copy out on your slates, but I'm leaving out the staves and the time notation. Your task is to work out whether the piece is three time or four time, and I'll be kind enough to hint that it's one or the other; and while you do that, I'll talk to those who feel furthest behind. Those who are ahead can come and join us to listen quietly as soon as you have finished, and start learning how to teach."

The twins and Tassend had the timing worked out as three time before Ferry had finished writing it out, and copied it out as he went along adding staves absently as they went; and so joined him and the slower group immediately. Ferry glanced at their slates and nodded.

"Good, you really are fast and knowledgeable," he said. "Right, I'm going right back to the beginning, you seven; because my friend T'rin, now Journeyman Blue Rider, caught up from being Holdless very fast, but he had the oddest of gaps in his knowledge, so I never assume that you know what goes before a generally accepted level."

He began asking questions, making notes on his own slate by each name; and the children answered readily. If a DRAGONRIDER could admit to gaps in his knowledge, so could they – which had been Ferry's intention.

He nodded to Menorial.

"You are all but caught up; you have some odd gaps as T'rin had, but I don't think you need any extra coaching beyond what your dorm mates will give you," he said. "If you feel in a sevenday that you are not catching up, then you are welcome to join the remedial class, but I think you have enough raw talent to make it unnecessary. I'm always available to talk any principle through, too," he added.

"Thank you, sir," said Menorial. She had been surprised that she had absorbed as much as she had, that she had known the answers to more questions than the six boys!

One of the boys was a tinker lad, whose education had, in general, been rather hit and miss, though his family had tried hard. Another lad was cot bred in a remote location, and had seen four different Harpers once each in the previous five turns, and had got as far as he had with a couple of tattered pieces of music that had been in the family for generations. Ferry praised him particularly for his tenacity and dedication; so far a cry from Morshal's scorn for his ignorance that the boy was wholly overcome by emotion and sobbed!

Of the others, two were seabred, from different Holds, but with equal scorn shown towards learning of any kind; and the final pair were brothers who had fled from a large cothold community of four families, which deemed education as much of a waste of time as many seaholders. The Cotholders had made it plain to the Harper who had visited them half a turn earlier that he was not welcome; and the brothers had sneaked him extra food and begged for knowledge.

"We met another Harper on his way, with an apprentice, and warned him," the older brother said, "and he gave us a whole two days intensive preparation, and said he was grateful for the warning, and wrote us a letter of recommendation to the Masterharper as free students, 'cos we didn't know we were supposed to pay."

"Those who can pay subsidise those who deserve the chance to learn, who cannot pay," said Ferry, "and the Harper Hall is also paid to teach by all the Holds, so we can afford to take more students than most crafts. Because education of a basic kind is the most vital skill, and a basis for ALL crafts. I reckon you ran into my friend Anslas and his helper Gavel; Gavel also ran away to learn, and he had trouble catching up."

"Oh yes! Those were their names!" said the younger brother, excitedly.

Ferry had earned himself the abject adoration of all six of his remedial pupils; and the universal respect of the rest.

oOoOo

Ferry felt like disrespecting Master Morshal in a physical sense with a straight left to the chin when the old Master accosted him, and asked,

"Less cocky now about teaching, Journeyman? Nasty little creatures, aren't they, making trouble?"

Ferry stared.

"I have found the classes I have taught so far to be perfectly polite and respectful," he said, coldly. "Perhaps respect is something a teacher takes to a class with him and has to show it, to be given it! I identified those who were behind in the new intake and made the obvious move of setting those who were ahead to helping them on. The bored child will make trouble and boys – and girls – are bored when they either do not understand, or when they have too little work that doesn't stretch them. THAT solves both those problems. But it never occurred to YOU to do anything but punish for either lack of understanding, or your inability to occupy the more advanced ones. You CAN'T do your job, Master Morshal. You never taught ME anything. What I didn't learn from my Hold Harper, I learned from T'rin, and we all brought each other on DESPITE your fumbling inadequacies. Now go and report me to the Masterharper and I'll tell him how you hoped to gloat maliciously and in front of apprentices because you assumed I'd be as inadequate as you, you old fool!"

It was a furious little speech, low enough in tone that no-one should overhear it, though Morshal had spoken loudly enough for the nearby apprentices to have heard. Ferry had ached for years to say something along these lines to the old Master, and now he was standing in Morshal's shoes with four classes of up to forty students in each, he felt justified in expressing his contempt. Ferry had had no trouble at all from any of his classes, even those with a few boys close to him in age still deemed in need of theory to back their practical work, but not of a calibre to be taught by Master Domick.

And Ferry had been cheered uproariously by those of Vaek's class, and by such of Meeri's friends as had not progressed past basic theory!

Ferry found he enjoyed the challenge of trying to get the best out of the youngsters; and petitioned Master Sebell to keep the teaching position to be able to follow them through as they progressed.

Sebell grinned.

"You didn't find them hopeless to teach, unmitigated idiots or cheeky and revolting brats then?" he asked.

"Huh, only an idiot would make so sweeping a statement!" said Ferry. "They're boys – all different. And the girls are all boys too at that age, so I shan't apologise for forgetting them. And speaking of girls, why hasn't Dorasha been graduated out of the third class? She's more than adequate at theory to be excused classes altogether."

"Because I only ever had poor reports of her work, and assumed that as well as failing to teach her to play left handed, her Hold Harper had failed her in theory as well," said Sebell. "I was planning to assess her myself as other Masters had been satisfied, but if you will release her for specialisation, I'll accept your recommendation."

"Huh, all because she's a girl!" said Ferry angrily. "Did HE make that sweeping statement about apprentices?"

"HE is the firelizard's father," said Sebell dryly in mild rebuke. "It was a comment made by Master Morshal, yes. And it's all about the Hall that he cornered you to gloat and whatever you said to him made him apoplectic. I quote the gleeful report of Vaek who was drumming the comment," he added.

Ferry chuckled.

"Trust Vaek," he said. "It was a brief exchange of opinions, sir, and if he expects the kids NOT to interfere with him, I would hope he'll keep his nose out of their business and my teaching; and I refuse to apologise to him for telling him the truth. He couldn't do his job."

Sebell nodded.

"I accept that the provocation was sufficient," he said, "and I'll make it clear to him that he is to stay clear of the apprentices, which should be easy as he dislikes them so much. And it's well nosed abroad that it was HE who approached YOU."

"He can't bear it that others can cope with a task that he could not," shrugged Ferry. "I think he'd die of shock if I ever told him I enjoy it. Reckon he made Master because he had just enough skill that he couldn't be left a Journeyman forever; or he'd been assigned to teach and it was felt he SHOULD be a Master when he got old. And I reckon he never wanted to teach in the first place and started off resenting his pupils. Then he just convinced himself that all apprentices are contrary, cheeky and dim."

Sebell nodded.

"You have a reasonably fair assessment of the man, I think," he said, sadly. "And I trust your discretion not to spread it about."

"Depends if by telling the truth as I see it I can quash some more wild and unrealistic rumours," said Ferry laconically.

Sebell laughed.

"It's easy to see you and T'rin did a lot of growing up together! Ferry, you're far too young to be a Master, you realise that of course?"

Ferry looked astonished.

"Yes, of course, Master! I could see you making T'rin a Master as soon as he Turns twenty, because he's something special, but I'm no T'rin! And I don't expect or receive any trouble for being a teaching Journeyman, you know!"

Sebell nodded.

"I should hope not. And of course we have other teaching Journeymen; we lost a lot of potential Masters under Fax, of course, which set us back; and we've got a good base of potential Masters coming up now. But we also have some very good Journeymen, and you are one of them. I'm happy to confirm your posting if you feel ready to take it on as a permanent thing,"

"I do want it, sir; and thank you!" said Ferry.

Sebell was not displeased; it left Menolly free to travel and troubleshoot once the baby had arrived, which was one of her talents. And a willing teacher was worth his weight in marks!


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5 **

The next excitement was the New Turn Gather; and the children had great fun!

For Meeri, the big event was the Gather Piece, music written especially for the Gather, by Master Domick. Meeri had got herself a gather gown for the occasion, in rich, Harper-blue velvet with figured velvet sleeves in Harper Blue and High Reaches blue, a pattern reminiscent of the sound holes of her beloved fiddle, and edged with silver. Domick had caught her counting her money to see what fabrics she could afford and told her firmly that as her husband he could afford any fabric she wanted, and that he would be offended if he might not buy her a gather gown. Meeri had capitulated; she wanted to look as fine as could be for him, and moreover she would hate anyone to say that he was a cheapskate when they finally admitted to their marriage. The gown fitted exactly to her slender figure and made her tiny, pert breasts obvious as they were not in the baggy tunics she affected for her everyday wear. She changed in Domick's room and pirouetted to show off.

Domick gave a long, appreciative whistle.

"Shards take it, Meeri, if you'd only changed a little earlier, I could have shown you how much I like it by taking it off!" he said.

His wife grinned at him.

"You'll just have to anticipate it for later…. AFTER you've danced with me on the Gather Square!" she said saucily.

"Minx!" said Domick, appreciatively.

oOoOo

The other musicians stared in consternation as the lovely girl made her way to the chair set for the second violin – for Meeri was promoted to play second only to Journeyman Bestor.

Bestor almost dropped his violin.

"M-MEER?" he stuttered.

"It's Meeri, actually," said Meeri. "I thought it was about time to come out of hiding. Do you like?"

"I – I …..it's… yes," said Bestor, changing colour several times. "D-does Master Domick know?"

"That I'm a girl? He always has," said Meeri, cheerfully. "And the Masterharper."

"Will – will you dance with me later?" stuttered Bestor.

"Gladly; as a friend," said Meeri, "but I'd be unkind not to warn you, I'm already spoken for, you know!"

"Spoken for? Who could deserve someone with as much talent as you except someone who loves fiddle as much as you do?" demanded Bestor.

Meeri flushed at the compliment.

"Bestor, as a friend, if I tell you, will you be discreet about it?" she said, quietly. "We're not advertising it."

Bestor nodded, jerkily, disappointed that she should be taken, and flattered that she considered him enough of a friend to confide in.

"And I'll stand as your friend if he ever hurts you!" he said.

Meeri tried not to show her mixed feelings at this, moved that he would do so, and dismayed at this sudden, violent infatuation. Which might hurt Bestor the worse for growing out of genuine friendship.

"I am married to Master Domick" she said, quietly, "and the Masterharper does know, and Dom prefers not to mention it too loudly until I walk the tables. It's a bit irregular," she added.

"Master Domick? But he's TURNS older than you! did – he didn't surely coerce you in any way? To make sure not to lose so fine a musician?"

Meeri shook her head. At least Bestor came up with the one almost reasonable reason any Master might coerce a prized pupil. Music was definitely ranked in her friend's thoughts ahead of sex or romance!

"He actually tried to run," she grinned, "I feel safe with him, Bestor; he could knock my father down and wouldn't think twice about doing so. And he understands as nobody else can the intricate music I want to write. It would be a crime for either of us to marry anyone else."

Bestor was hasty, not always fair or kind to those of his pupils who did not exhibit either talent or love for his favourite instrument, and he had a sharp tongue; but he was no fool.

"And though I play well, I cannot write," he admitted. "I – I apologise for making assumptions. You are right; it would be a crime for either of you to be with anyone else. I – I should still like to dance with you."

"I'd be delighted to accept," said Meeri, sincerely, touching his arm kindly. Bestor was a man who was true to music to the core and he understood. "Thank you for understanding," she added, and grinned. "Care to guess which passage for violin I wrote for Dom?"

"He let you put some of your work in? He must love you truly!" said Bestor. "I… let me see!" he frowned in thought. "The little melody with the lilting counterpoint on page four?"

"Spot on!" grinned Meeri.

"I thought it was a little off-style for old… for Master Domick," Bestor said.

"Oh, I don't take offence at you calling him Old Domick; it's in affection after all," said Meeri, cheerfully, "but you don't feel it's a weak bit, just put in because he loves me?" she asked a little anxiously.

Bestor shook his head.

"No, I don't; and nor does he, or he'd never include it, however much he loved you, I didn't mean to imply that he might."

"Well I thought that; but it's nice to have confirmation," said Meeri, candidly. "It was a piece I'd written, and it seemed to fit in so well to the theme so I asked; and he said yes."

A flautist strode over.

"Bestor, who is this…woman?" he demanded. "Is Meer ill? He was at the Gather this morning! Has he let us down?"

Bestor laughed.

"Pardek, you idiot, this IS Meer! Or rather, Meeri! She's been dressed as a boy all turn; now she's showing us the beautiful truth!"

Pardek stared, almost rudely.

Meeri could not resist. She pulled a face at him.

He had been the man who had objected to a new apprentice playing in that Spring's Gather Piece; and he had tried to make out that she was off timing, AND hinted that she had acquired her grandfather's fiddle through dishonest means!

"It's a disgrace!" Pardek spluttered, "taking advantage of the Harper Hall under false pretences!"

"Well, why not take it up with Master Robinton who accepted me – knowing I was a girl – and Master Domick who has also always known?" said Meeri, scornfully. "Sit down you fool, we're about to be called to order and you are making a spectacle of yourself and letting the Hall down!"

The flautist retreated, fuming; and it is to be noted that he produced enough sour notes to earn a glare from Domick!

Meeri enjoyed playing as always, and was too lost in the music even to notice her solid group of female supporters clapping each movement. Her own little theme and each reprise of it was but a part of the whole; and nobody was more surprised than she when Domick made a brief speech of thanks for the response to his music on his behalf, and his special apprentice, Meeri, who had been responsible for crafting one of the secondary themes.

Meeri burned; and her fan-group stamped and whistled. The twins have been VERY impressed with her skill and were even more so, knowing that she had written parts of the music!

oOoOo

Lord Groghe claimed the privilege of kissing Meeri on each cheek; the old Lord Holder appreciated pretty women!

"Well, m'dear, you scrub up nicely, I must say!" he congratulated. "Thought you might, when I first met you, nice to know I was not wrong! What was your bit then?"

Meeri obligingly whistled her theme, perfectly well aware he would have very little idea how it fitted in.

"Hah! Just as clever as old Domick; couldn't tell without that you told me!" said Groghe.

He really was a sweetie, as T'lana described him; if rather ignorant about music, thought Meeri!

oOoOo

The younger apprentices were not to attend the evening festivities of the Gather; and the red-haired league was disappointed not to get to watch Meeri dance.

"She's as pretty as any Weyrwoman!" declared Ranya.

"Prettier!" said Raissa, loyally.

"Bet all the older boys and half the Journeymen will be queueing up to dance with her, laying out their tongues like a carpet for her to walk on!" said Teerima.

They sighed deeply.

It was a definite vicissitude of life not to be able to watch their elders make fools of themselves over Meeri!

"I'll tell you kids all about it," Irette promised. "Guess it'll be really funny to see them all scrambling for her favours; they tried with me 'til I told them I had no interest in boys."

"Oh, are you a girl homosexual?" asked Raissa, interested.

Irette clipped her lightly around the ear.

"Personal questions! I'm not anything at the moment except a Harper apprentice!" she declared. "I don't HAVE to get married and I plan on having time to myself before I even THINK about going out with boys!"

"Oh, you have family with THOSE sorts of ideas, sorry!" said Raissa, darkly. "We've heard of people that marry girls off as soon as they bleed. Pa says they're misbegotten fork-born whose brains live in their undersized parts."

"He said that in your hearing?" gasped Dorasha.

The twins exchanged a look.

"Well, he didn't KNOW we were listening," said Ranya.

"We were behind a hedge," said Raissa.

"Well you mustn't repeat it! it's horridly rude!" said Dorasha, "and I'm seabred, so I KNOW all the rude words there are, and I'd be loath to use anything like that!"

"Which bit, misbegotten, fork-born or undersized parts?" demanded Raissa. "'Cos misbegotten just means born all wrong."

"Fork-born; it's NOT nice. And misbegotten isn't very nice either and nor is referring to a man's parts. Misbegotten implies being born without a father," said Dorasha.

The twins exchanged puzzled looks.

"But someone said it about us once, and we have two fathers!" said Ranya, "'cos there's Pa, who was married to our mother, and there's Dacky, her lover, who sired us."

"Well…" Dorasha swallowed, helplessly, "er, it's if people think there were irregularities… "she floundered.

"It means if you're a bastard; born out of marriage one way or another, or sired by someone your mother isn't married to," said Irette, bluntly. "I'm seabred too, but I'm from Tillek where we call a spade a spade. And if your Pa loves you and cares about your wishes I guess it doesn't matter if he sired you or not, and my folks are misbegotten fork-born by choice, because they were born twisted in their thoughts, so there. You kids are all right, sorry I clouted you, twin."

Irette could not tell the twins apart and refused to try; which attitude they preferred to those who pretended to know and had not got a clue!

oOoOo

The young – and not so young – Harpers did indeed proceed to make fools of themselves, falling over each other to ask Meeri for a dance!

Those who already knew she was a girl did not, of course, make idiots of themselves; and Ferry, Shoris, Stev and Lisend had already secured a dance each with her, for the laugh as much as anything else. Each was also to dance with Irette and Dorasha for the same reason of old times' sake as dorm mates! Meeri had also booked to dance with her own friends, Vaek, Laghan, Jaynor and Dekello, who had fallen about laughing to see the consternation of the other musicians for the Gather Piece!

Master Olodkey was furious when the news was brought to him.

He roared down the stairs to confront Meeri.

"You! YOU! You let me make a fool of myself believing you were having a homosexual relationship with Domick!" he howled.

"I never let you make a fool of yourself, Master Olodkey," said Meeri, coldly, "I think you managed that without any help from me. If you chose to believe a poison pen letter slipped unsigned and cowardly under your door, I can't be blamed for that. Master Domick was, I believe, hacked off that you jumped to hasty conclusion about me as his special apprentice without bothering to wait for any proof of wrongdoing; as I was NOT guilty of doing anything as stupid as filling the Message Drum with flour. You feel discredited by fuelling malicious lies by your own careless behaviour? I say if there is any discredit, you have brought it upon yourself! Good day to you!" she turned to go.

Olodkey slapped her across the side of the head, and she almost fell.

"I will not be spoken to that way by an apprentice, boy or girl!" he roared.

"I will not be spoken to by anyone in so intemperate and un-Master-like way," said Meeri, tightly. "YOU were at fault, and I was prepared to forget it. It is YOU who have brought it up again. Master Olodkey, you have a talent, it seems, for making a fool of yourself; you are doing so now. And if you strike me again you will risk my unborn child and I WILL make complaint against you as is my right under the Charter."

Olodkey snatched back his hand.

"So, you're slutting about too, are you?" he sneered.

"More assumptions? How quick you are to these false beliefs," she let the contempt she felt for him show.

"Unwed mothers are an abomination!" he snarled.

"Indeed? I'm sure Silvina will be delighted to know your opinion of her when she has reared and cared for so tenderly the child of Master Robinton," said Meeri, coldly.

Olodkey paled; he had gone too far.

"Do you even KNOW your baby's father to marry?" he sneered.

"I've been married to my husband long enough to conceive our child, so I'd say yes," said Meeri, with a voice that came from _Between_. "Not that it's any of your business; and if I were not married, and had conceived by rape, you would be guilty of causing undue mental anguish; you have no authority to question my pregnancy. It is Hall business that I am a fardling good violinist and I write music good enough for Master Domick to consider including in his works – and to be prepared to credit me for the same to Lord Groghe and the rest of the audience, even though only a Master usually gets their names put on a work. And I doubt if I had been an idiot and got with child in an irregular fashion that it would count against my use to the Hall. Now, I suggest that before the whole of Fort Hold sees a Master behaving so disgracefully, you go and bang on your own drum or whatever takes your fancy!" she ended furiously, though her voice was still held low.

Olodkey was beside himself; but could not think of a good retort.

"Seven days water rations!" he said.

"That, Master, I will clear with Silvina, as regards its effects on the health of my child; and will accept it only with any modifications she suggests," said Meeri, quietly.

Olodkey could not argue; it was unlawful to jeopardise a pregnant woman's health! He turned on his heel and swung off in a fine fury.

Meeri took a deep breath; she was quite shaking with anger and sickness over the unpleasantness.

"HOW I do not like that man," she muttered to herself.

"The feeling appears to be mutual," Stev had come up behind her. "Are you married? And with child?"

"Oh Stev! Don't tell me you're being romantic over me too!" said Meeri, in lively horror.

Stev pulled a face.

"I guess I thought it was worthwhile courting you now you're older; but someone obviously stole a march on me," his eyes suddenly widened. "DOMICK?" he guessed.

She grinned happily.

"The same!"

"Well the old….!" Stev broke off to grin ruefully. "I wish you both happy!" he added. "I like him most awfully; I can't fault your choice."

"Thanks Stev!" she embraced him quickly. "Now I plan to enjoy my dancing!"

oOoOo

Irette had relatively little to report back to the younger ones, who had failed in their quest to stay awake until the older ones returned and had to demand the story in the morning. Irette had missed the encounter with Olodkey, which was perhaps just as well; and Vaek was acting against type to hush up any rumours in order that the Hall not be discredited before the Holderfolk.

Irette was happy to pass on what little she had seen, however.

"Meeri just danced with her friends and with Master Domick," she told the younger ones, "and turned down all those that were slathering over her being female. She did dance with Journeyman Bestor, but then he plays fiddle as well as teaching it, so they're colleagues. I think she did it on purpose and is avoiding romantic entanglements just like me," said Irette.

"Goodness! Does Master Domick dance?" asked Raissa. "I thought Masters were too old to be able to!"

"Oh, he dances very well, actually!" said Irette. "they were pretty spectacular dancing together; she danced some tinker dances with him too, asked Journeyman Bestor and Stev and Ferry to play for it. It was WILD!" she said. "I wish I could dance like that!"

"Why? I thought you didn't want boyfriends," said Ranya.

"N…no, but I wish I could dance like that anyway, just because," said Irette.

"If only for the pleasure of turning them down? I'll show you," laughed Dorasha. "She taught me; it's how the boys of the dorm learned the music! I guess Bestor just learns quickly; it is a measure of how good he really is, you know!"

"Splendid!" grinned Irette, who had no interest in how good Bestor might be. "How do you think Master Domick learned?"

"Silly," said Dorasha, "Once he found out she knew a different music style and dance for to any he knew, he'd insist on Meeri teaching him, so he could use it in any music he wrote if he wanted to."

"Oh, of course!" said Irette. "He's a bit intense and intimidating like that. I'm glad I'M not his special!"

"Where is Meeri?" asked Petiana.

Irette and Dorasha shrugged.

"Reckon Irette has it a bit wrong about avoiding romantic entanglements and she went home with the one she's actually seeing, and found a quiet spot to dance horizontally," said Dorasha, "hiding her boyfriend in amongst other friends."

"Neat," said Raissa. "When we get old we must remember that."

Both Dorasha and Irette threw pillows at her!

oOoOo

Meeri was NOT on a water diet.

She reported to Silvina, and told her everything; and on due consideration repeated the whole conversation to highlight how infernally rude she HAD been, which also involved Olodkey's comments about unwed mothers.

Silvina went to speak to the Master Drummer. As Headwoman, she had considerable authority in the Hall, as well as the full support of Sebell; and she ordered Olodkey to cease his childish feud with an apprentice and to never approach Meeri ever again.

Being thought childish was the most humiliating thing that could happen to Olodkey; and he sullenly promised.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Although the main provisioning for the Harper and Healer Halls had been carried out over the winter break, supplies were continually brought in, particularly of perishable consumables, though other goods were carried too. Both Halls maintained amongst their support staff a number of carters to facilitate this.

One of them took a particular interest in the red-haired league and addressed himself to them as they were playing outside in a leisure period.

"Pore liddle girls," he said to them, with what he apparently hoped was an ingratiating smile, "your parents too poor to hope to get you married off respectable?"

Raissa stared at him.

"For your information, my man, we are here to become crafters. And to suggest that such is only a poor substitute for marriage disrespects the Harper Hall and those of us who see more in life than marrying some idiot man who expects nothing more of his wife than cooking, cleaning and childrearing, because he doesn't have a brain and doesn't expect his wife to have one either. At least, I bet that's the sort of husband you are, or you'd aspire to be a Harper, not a carter!"

"My sister does not mean to insult the profession of carter," said Ranya, hastily, "only your attitude is enough to make anyone waxy."

"It should be quite outmoded that one's gender should be in question at all if one has an ability," said Petiana, "indeed, in Weyrs, because of the exigencies of Queens being leaders, it is the Weyrwomen who have more say than the male Riders."

"And if our parents were too poor to afford the considerable apprenticeship fee so we were here on merit at the discretion of the Masterharper, then it would be none of your business anyway, fellow," said Teerima.

"Hoity toity!" said the carter.

"Don't be offensive to my milk-sister and friends and they won't be offensive back," said Miax. "WAS there anything particular you wanted? Only, being apprentices, WE all have duties to attend to in learning out extremely skilled trade. No? good afternoon to you then, good Carter!"

The Red-haired League sauntered off.

They had no specific duties, as it was a half-holiday, but the carter had made them feel uncomfortable.

"Did we throw our Rank around too much?" asked Raissa.

"Well he kind of asked for it, making a comment like that," said Menorial. "And you didn't actually throw Rank around at all, because none of you Ranking actually mentioned who you were related to or anything."

"I seen a man like that once, who looked at little girls in the same way," Yanal's melodious voice held their attention. "They called him a child spoiler; raped a little girl of nine turns he did."

"NINE? But that's not old enough even for the most daftest seaholder to think of marrying off!" gasped Raissa. "One of our sisters is nine!"

"Them sort of people are sick in the head, but you have to deal with them, Holder Reshart said," said Yanal. "They hanged him from a pine tree. Not much help to the kid, but it stopped him doing it again to anyone else."

"So he wants to rape us, do you think?" asked Petiana, aghast, probably one of the few there who had a reasonably full idea of what that entailed.

"'S that why he spoke about us being poor, 'cos he hoped no-one would care?" asked Raissa.

"The Masterharper would care," said Teerima.

"Yes, I know that, and you know that, but does he?" asked Raissa. "If he doesn't gen'ly have much to do with apprentices – and he wore Healer Hall colours so I guess he wouldn't – he might not know how much Master Sebell values ALL his apprentices."

"What mischief are you lot plotting that it's important that the Masterharper values all his apprentices?" Menolly's voice was laughing as they walked right into her round the corner of a cot.

"Oh Master!" said Raissa, greatly relieved. "We wondered if we should tell the Masterharper – well, I wondered, and I know twin wondered, and I 'spect the rest did – but you're close to him and you're a girl and you'd be better than troubling him."

"What is it, kiddy?" Menolly was serious straight away, seeing real concern in Raissa's face.

The Red-haired League told her, with much interruption and contradiction; they were a band of individuals rather than having a gang leader, though Raissa generally acted as spokesman.

Menolly managed to unravel the tale, and listened seriously.

"Well, it seems to have been a worrying encounter," she said. "There's no proof that he is a child spoiler, other than his expression; I don't disbelieve you, Yanal, but it's too vague to arrest a man on! You kids stay away from him, and I'll see that he's watched, all right?"

"Thanks Master Menolly!" said Raissa, reassured.

The children promptly forgot the carter; Master Menolly had it well in hand! And there was the rest of a free afternoon to enjoy and explore the vicinity on a day fine enough for such pleasures.

oOoOo

The routine was starting to settle down for the new apprentices; Ferry taught theory every morning, with shorter classes in several individual instruments between that class and the noon meal. Yanal, Menorial and Petiana did not learn flute, fipple pipe or multiple pipes, but reported instead for extra classes with Master Shonagar during the two periods devoted to those instruments, fipple pipe and multiple pipes having a shared class in this first turn. They joined in happily enough in classes in gitar, fiddle and harp, though Yanal had trouble holding a fiddle in his big hands. Fortunately Journeyman Bestor, who taught this class, only got irritable with those who were in his view either lazy or hopeless; Yanal presented a mechanical problem that the sarcastic journeyman admitted was none of the boy's own fault, and went out of his way to find ways round Yanal's problem. Once Bestor had moved the boy to the big chellow, Yanal was much happier and made a fair enough showing to earn a brief word of praise. Bestor was quick to scorn; but unlike Master Morshal he was equally quick to praise. And he class COULD be opted out of by those who felt the instrument was not for them, which two facts made all the difference to the level of tolerance with which the pupils viewed Bestor. This included Raissa who was accused by Bestor of making noises like a dying wherry, which Raissa was first to acknowledge was fair comment.

Yanal had his own gitar – not perhaps the most skilfully crafted instrument from a musical sense, but certainly adequate and carefully made, for woodcraft was a major craft in his own Hold, Timbercreek, which had a small Woodcrafter Hall dedicated almost entirely to ship and boat building. Journeyman Teller was a good teacher and was glad the boy could show better for having his own instrument.

"The build is good, but the tone could be better," he said to Yanal. "Master Jerint will help you craft a better; but you may wish to build other instruments to your size first. I accept that instrument as adequate. Far more adequate than SOME travesties new apprentices bring."

This was not a barbed comment at any of those present, as even Tarney's slightly showy gitar was well enough crafted; and Raissa's gitar had been made by Journeyman Dacky as had Ranya's flute, their pet instruments. Teller had, however, seen some apprentices with 'pretty' fairings and was pleased to have a class with decent, if generally very basic, gitars, those who wished to take the instrument further. Others must do some lessons on Hall instruments for a rounded education before deciding whether to drop individual instruments in their second turn. Only those with exceptional gifts like Yanal, Petiana and Menorial were generally excused the taster classes unless they were too poor to be encouraged to continue, or unless other instrument teachers made individual negotiations with regards to the better use of the time of a poor to average student.

As only Ranya of the League took to the harp with any facility, she was likely to be the only one of her fellows to pursue that; though Teerima made a fair showing. The rest of the Red-Haired League left the Journeyman teaching Harp sighing and shuddering, and dropping hints that if they wanted to put in more practise on other instruments he would not oppose such negotiations.

"Pity our choice of instruments don't blend, twin," said Raissa, "'cos you've got a better feel for the harp than for the flute even, I think."

"It feels so right," said Ranya, dreamily. "What about multiple pipes? You took to that pretty well!"

Raissa brightened.

She had enjoyed playing the multi-chambered pipes, and that went well with the harp. She could pipe for Ranya's harp, and Ranya could play flute for her gitar.

It worked out well, and wasn't unfair.

oOoOo

The afternoons in the Harper Hall were devoted to singing, instrument crafting, history and the Charter, drum messages and general knowledge.

Yanal had difficulties too with crafting instruments; his large fingers were surprisingly deft, but the tools felt small and clumsy to him.

"Well, lad, I see we shall have to ask for a set of tool handles to fit you," said Master Jerint. "I shall write to the Woodcrafter Hall; their turner is related to Bronze Rider H'llon, who is by far and away the biggest young man I have ever seen. Though you're not far off it yourself," he added.

Yanal brightened.

"Oh, the Weyrwoodcrafter who's now Masterprinter who is Wingleader of the Protective Wing! He's amazing, Master, Jerint, the bravest Dragonrider on Pern!"

Jerint permitted himself a small smile at such wholehearted heroworship.

"He's a good and generous man and helps the instrument crafting at High Reaches Harperweyr," he said, "but I'd not ask him personally, though I dare say he'd do it! Because he's so busy with this new craft."

Yanal nodded solemnly.

The new apprentices were reaping the benefit of the new Printercraft Hall with printed staves to copy music onto, and the promise had been made of copy books for lessons instead of slates by the end of the Turn!

"I can use tools with big handles, my family has those, for we're all big," he said. "I made this," and he displayed his gitar.

Jerint examined it, nodding.

"You know your basic woodworking; you are then ahead of your fellows, and will not be held up for having to wait for tools," he said. "It's nicely finished and well varnished too. You need theory of music to help you craft a better sounding-box, then I think you'll be a very fine instrument crafter. Very fine."

Yanal beamed.

"Thank you sir! I confess I was worried what to do if my voice breaks badly, because I'm only ordinary at playing gitar and chellow and I can't find the harp strings and pipes are too small as well as Master Shonager not wanting me to use them. And it seems a shame to study and then be no more use!"

"A big lad like you could make a decent sound on the message drums," Master Jerint said, unwillingly.

"Oh, yes, sir, I suppose so," Yanal did not sound enthusiastic. "But I like woodcrafting, it was just that I wanted music more… if I can be an instrument crafter, I could have both and be really greedy!"

Jerint laughed.

"Very well; help me oversee simple jointing techniques with the others for now, and we'll start to cover theory too, to build another gitar ; and a chellow too if you like."

"THANK you, sir!" said Yanal. "My pa warned me I might get teased about my size and be in trouble, but people have gone out of their way to help me, it's really nice!"

"Well, one would HOPE that Harpers could be flexible," grunted Jerint, reflecting that perhaps it was as well that the lad was excused flute.

Of the rest of the red-heads, only Petiana showed any aptitude for instrument crafting amongst the girls; though Miax took to it like a firelizard to flying! Menorial was neat enough but it would never be her favourite skill.

Raisa manages to get a chisel stuck right through her palm after having already cut herself on a saw; and was dispatched trying not to blub and dripping blood and involuntary tears to the Healer Hall to have the chisel removed and first aid administered.

Journeyman Teller was furious with her when he heard; and scolded her roundly for risking her tendons when she had the makings of a fine gitar player. This diatribe DID make the little girl burst into tears; and the Journeyman, soft-hearted enough under a brusque exterior, found himself giving her a cuddle on his knee and murmuring reassurance that Master Oldive was a great Healer and there was no reason why it would not heal, with careful oiling and exercise.

"Like Menolly's!" he said.

Raissa had not heard the tale of Menolly's badly healed hand after an accident gutting fish; and about her mother's deliberate attempts to maim the young Harper to make her give up music.

The meanness and unfairness of this tale made Raissa forget her own woes in indignation! Much, it may be said, to Teller's relief! Lachrymose young girls were not what he was used to!

The upshot was that Master Jerint reluctantly suggested to Raissa that she forgo instrument crafting.

"If you are so unhandy, I'd hate you to risk maiming yourself and spoiling the rest of your craft," he said. "I dislike doing this; it is a way you apprentices may make a few marks as well as being a way you may craft instruments precisely to your own needs."

"Sir, you are kind!" said Raissa, earnestly. "Fortunately, twin and me are well off so we can have marks from home to spend at gathers, so it's not as disastrous as if we weren't."

Jerint nodded, relieved.

"Well, I'm glad of that. Though we like all our apprentices to be able to earn, because it enables you to feel more a part of the craft from the beginning. I hear you have a small, neat hand, though; perhaps you might devote some time instead to copying ballads for sale, before this printing business gets up and running for that too?"

Raissa brightened.

"If that's useful, I'd like to," she said.

oOoOo

The entire class agreed that nobody could make history more boring than Master Arnor.

The twins, well versed in history, entertained the rest of their fellows by making history live; and Yanal came up with the idea of acting out scenes from history to help remember it, and have fun too. The idea of being strolling players appealed to the other red-heads, especially the twins, who promptly turned somersaults of sheer joy, much to the amazed admiration of their friends!

Several of their renditions of historical moments were extempore in the extreme and verged on the scurrilous; but were at least largely accurate in content if a little free in linguistic liberty. Nowhere was it otherwise recorded that Fax threatened to knock F'lar's block off and piss down his neck. This was Miax's contribution.

As Sebell said to the other Masters,

"At least it's harmless mischief that occupies their fertile imaginations AND teaches them lessons too! Congratulations, Arnor, for so firing their enthusiasm!"

Arnor grunted.

He preferred history reduced to a list of events to learn!

oOoOo

As three of their number enjoyed singing, the rest of the red-heads and associates dutifully breathed and groaned to Shonagar's direction without too much fuss, until it all became too much for the Gang of Four who clucked their way like the Hall fowl – reasonably melodiously – through Menolly's running song.

They were on water rations for three days and declared it well worth it.

The others, who had been suffused with mirth, saved a bubbly pie each for the miscreants for when their punishment ended, and it has to be said there were four bellyaches that night.

They declared THAT worth it too!

oOoOo

Master Sebell himself taught general knowledge, and encouraged debate and discussion around far-ranging topics, rather than keeping straitly to a set syllabus; in his opinion, encouraging apprentices to think and question and reason was more important than cramming facts into them.

The last half hour of each general knowledge class consisted of the Masterharper reading, from the records of the High Reaches logicators, in his lovely and well-trained voice, turning bald records into exciting stories. It would again teach the apprentices the application of logic; for logicating was a craft that Sebell felt should be closely allied to Harping!

His pupils were enthralled.

General knowledge was far and away the most popular class on the curriculum!

Drum messages was a class that was perhaps less popular.

The Red-headed League at least had a head start with four of their number having learned as much as the Ranking were expected to learn; and having the logic charts in the girls' dormitory also helped. And it was fun to work out what the next progression might mean, the beats performing acrobatics that built up, as Raissa put it. It would never, however be a favourite class of any of the eight friends!

oOoOo

The sixth day's morning was always devoted to private practice, special classes, and instrument crafting under supervision but untutored. It was a relatively relaxed day, though slacking was NOT expected. Organised sports and wrestling were the order of the afternoon.

The seventh day was the day of leisure, as defined in the Charter, for no youth could be expected to work hard without some time off, even as the Charter guaranteed one day in seven as leisure for adults who were working.

"Not that it counts for much when the fish are running," said Menorial.

"Or, I guess, when the beasts are birthing, nor during harvest," said Raissa. "We work all round to get the harvest in, then have three full days feasting and holiday. But I suppose it all evens out."

"And nice to have it guaranteed here," said Ranya. "If only it were warm enough for us to enjoy! This beastly cold and rain is depressing!"

"Oh well, I suppose they DO have a summer," sighed Raissa.

Wet seventhday or not, there was exciting news in the evening.

Master Menolly had birthed her son, to be named Robse after Master Robinton, and after the boy's own father, Master Sebell.

The Hall thought the name very appropriate!


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

Another wet seventhday did bring some trouble to the new apprentices.

They had exhausted the possibilities of history, having killed Fax three times, routed Lady Thella and evicted T'kul from High Reaches, noisily riding in on 'dragons' that were chairs turned backwards, and now they were bored.

"I know!" said Raissa, suddenly, "Lets have a race all around the Great Hall without touching the ground!"

It was riotous fun.

It was less riotous fun giving up the rest of their leisure day straightening displaced furniture, mending the leg of a form that had somehow collapsed, and laundering tablecloths that had muddy footprints on them, and sweeping up the soot from where Ranya dangled from the mantelpiece and turned upside-down with her legs up the chimney just for fun. There was no fire needed as the turn progressed, but the chimneys had not yet been swept.

It had been a grand romp though; and only three apprentices who had not managed much travel about the room really grumbled about the punishment!

Sebell strongly suggested that if the twins wanted to use their acrobatics in play, they might push the tables aside – so long as a Journeyman would supervise – and teach that to their friends on wet seventh days. After all, thought Sebell, one never knew when disguising a Harper as an itinerant acrobat might come in useful; and without the skills, it was impossible to pass as a genuine acrobat.

The twins thought it a good idea without thinking through the same implications that occurred to the Masterharper, merely voting him a good sport.

They also signed up for the pairs wrestling competition, planning to use their tumbling, for there were no rules beyond banning gouging and groin hits. The winners of each wrestling competition would play off against the Hold champions at the next Gather, and the Hall prestige rested on being grand champions!

Other pairs candidates, mostly older, laughed at the tiny girls.

They stopped laughing quite quickly when they had been kicked in the face a few times by somersaulting feet.

"You have great potential, you two," said Ferry, who paired off with seabred Shoris. "When you can fight as well as tumble, you'll be our champions for sure – and we'll clean up betting for you against Fort next turn!"

Raissa grinned.

"Teach us more fighting, sir?"

"I'll say!" said Ferry, enthusiastically. "You won't win this turn – and you'd be hammered if Braid and Kerill weren't travelling – but NEXT turn is another story altogether!"

The twins beamed!

They might be well ahead, but both knew that they had no outstanding talent, and were just uniformly better than average at most things they tried. If they could shine for the Harper Hall through their acrobatic skills it would really be something!

oOoOo

Spring came quickly enough; as it happened, Fort Hold was no further north than Igen Weyr, but enjoyed a wetter climate and was, moreover, higher above sea level than much of the region the twins knew around Kunder's Gorge Hold. It made enough difference to notice, and brought enough winter snow for the apprentices to have fun with it in the coldest months, though Teerima and Miax had explained that you could not have really called it SNOW, not REAL snow.

Spring flowers dispelled any gloom however, either in those not used to cold, or those used to cold with more fun in it! With spring too came a visiting Brown Rider wearing the knots of Igen Weyr on his jacket, and a grim look on his face.

The twins exchanged a look; and ran to intercept him.

"Oh Brown Rider, please, sir, have you got bad news for us?" demanded Raissa. "Our sister and two cousins are candidates in your Weyr and you look so awfully grim!"

The Rider relaxed his face to smile at them kindly.

"No, younglings, no news for you – nothing bad, anyway! I'll see if I can get permission to talk to you later with general news, though, before I go visit my daughter in HER apprenticeship in Weavercraft! Though you might be able to help me, at that," he added, "have you or any other girls had any trouble with a Healer Hall carter?"

The twins exchanged significant looks.

"Our friend Yanal said he looked at us girls like he saw a child spoiler look before his Holder hanged the fellow," said Raissa.

"Master Menolly told us to stay out of his way, 'cos she's having him watched," said Ranya, "only she's just had a baby so I hope she's had time."

"Ah! Perhaps then you will be kind enough to conduct me to Master Menolly; because she and I need to compare notes," the Brown Rider said. "From what I've heard a baby isn't likely to stop her for long!"

This was true enough, but the implications of his words had the twins gasping.

"Oh! has he hurt YOUR daughter? Is she in the Weavercraft at Fort?" demanded Raissa, all sympathy.

The Brown Rider smiled reassuringly.

"No, and Bretine would give him what for if he tried – like I wager you two would, for you're the acrobat twins, aren't you?"

They grinned identical grins of confirmation.

"That's us," said Raissa with a cheerful disregard of the grammar lessons Sebell attempted to instil within the general knowledge classes.

"I'm B'tin, and I undertook to take and carry the deposition of a candidate whom he has hurt," said the Brown Rider. "Because I DO have a daughter, so I feel it's my business more than most."

The twins nodded sagely.

That made perfect sense to them.

They gladly delivered B'tin to Menolly!

oOoOo

B'tin later met up with the entire Red-headed League to feast on such goodies as they had filched or cozened for his entertainment. The collection was eclectic; but B'tin appreciated the effort and managed to look sufficiently enthusiastic whilst leaving most treats to be consumed by the apprentices!

"Carya, Jessenia and Roban are settled in well," he told them , "They're willing kids and were already popular with almost everyone in the Weyr before even other candidates started arriving. There are a lot of girls; and there's a Queen egg too, so some candidates are there just for that, and your sister and Jess busy depressing pretensions!" he laughed. "Roban beat up a bully, who tried to hurt Jessenia, but V'sheren rescued her."

"I SAID he was sweet on her," said Ranya, in satisfaction.

B'tin grinned.

"That's as maybe," he said. "My weyrmate is standing for a Green too, to share with me; so I know more about the candidates than most, and she says your relatives are all delightful, and she'll be amazed if they don't all Impress. And she's Headwoman and has seen plenty of female candidates."

"YAH-HEY!" Raissa punched the air.

"They aren't Impressed YET," said Ranya, repressively.

"Headwomen know a NAWFUL lot," said Petiana. "Manora knows all that's going on in Benden."

"Weyrbred?" asked B'tin.

Petiana nodded.

"But not a dragonman's child, sir, just born to two support staff," she said.

"No reason you shouldn't Impress a Green though, when you're older," said B'tin. "Think about it: you've the choice of High Reaches or Igen now, if you decide to go for it. It's a pity, in a way, it was Mirrim who Impressed at Benden; she's a bit….forceful, and I guess it has put some people off the idea of repeating the Impression of Greens by other girls."

"They say Y'lara of High Reaches is forceful, sir, and she was first Green Rider female there, and it didn't put THEM off!" said Yanal.

B'tin laughed.

"Well High Reaches is a law unto itself, I guess! I like all the High Reaches Riders I've met; but they are all strongly individualistic so maybe they are less intimidated by strong women. We're copying them in giving respect to all female Riders, as though they were more junior Queen Riders, because it works for High Reaches and if it ain't broke, don't fix it, as they say."

Petiana opened her mouth to defend Benden; wriggled, wrinkled her nose, and subsided.

Mirrim received respect as Brekke's fosterling and as a healer, but she was not especially popular because of her excess of organising zeal!

"What happened about the carter, sir? Are you allowed to tell us?" Raissa remembered the errand that had brought B'tin in the first place.

"I spoke to Master Menolly and to Masterhealer Oldive; and we discovered that the repellent creature had laid hands on some of the little girls of the Healers and drudges at the Healer Hall, but not got as far as hurting any of them," he said. "And the matter has been passed to Lord Groghe, himself a father of daughters. I expect with a deposition signed by a Queenrider – the candidate managed to speak to Nadira – it will go ill for him. Lord Groghe does not like people who hurt children."

"Good," said Raissa, "and if he's chained out in Fall, at least it won't be you who has to see it."

"I honestly do not know Lord Groghe's plans," said B'tin, "and I'm not sure that I'd tell you kids if I did. I am certain that the Lord Holder will enact justice that is meet and fitting."

And with that they had to be content.

oOoOo

Lord Groghe had interviewed several sobbing little girls from the Healer Hall, most of them younger than his own youngest daughter, Nataly. When the carter gave excuse that his stepdaughter Melvi had seduced him and that the other sluts were flirting with him, the grizzled old Lord lost his temper – a rare occurrence when he was administering justice – and first floored the carter, who was quite a few pounds heavier and many years younger – and then ordered the man flogged to death by volunteers who were the fathers of daughters.

He laid on a good few strokes himself and took responsibility to laying the last ones that killed the man; for Groghe never shirked responsibility.

oOoOo

It was another sevenday later that the twins were summoned out of Ferry's class by a journeyman to attend the Masterharper.

"What have you done?" hissed Petiana.

"NOTHING!" replied Raissa in a sibilant undertone. "Not that I can think of, anyway!"

"He wasn't waxy," said the Journeyman laconically as they came out, "I don't think you are in trouble."

Master Sebell smiled cheerfully at the little girls as they entered his office curiously.

"Don't look so guilty, unless you are!" he admonished. "I just thought you'd like to know the news from Igen Weyr!"

"OOooooh, hatching?" both spoke together.

"Hatching indeed!" said Sebell. "Your sister is now Green Rider C'rya; and your cousins Impressed too."

"What colour for Ro – R'ban and what's Jessenia contracted to?" demanded Raissa.

"R'ban is a Bronze Rider and J'enia Impressed the Queen," said Sebell.

There was only barely room in his office for two little girls to perform backflips from a standing start; but they managed not to knock anything over, and came up holding hands.

Sebell laughed.

"I don't have to ask if you two are happy!" he said. "Run along back to class and…" he sighed, "…and try not to knock anyone over on your way," he finished speaking to an empty room.

Back on ground level, the two cartwheeled and did handsprings all the way across the courtyard and burst back into Ferry's class, red-faded and exuberant.

"C'rya is a Green Rider, J'enia's a Queenrider and R'ban is a Bronze Rider!" they chorused, without waiting for permission.

Ferry smiled indulgently.

He had jumped up and down cheering when he watched T'rin Impress, after all.

"I'm delighted for your family," he said. "Very well, there's only ten minutes more of class; you may all dismiss to recess early to celebrate!"

The twins earned a good level of popularity for that!

oOoOo

The twins were also popular with their dorm mates for doing reasonably well in the wrestling competition. Their father had taught them some self-defence moves and they were strong and supple. They lost after a couple of rounds, but did not feel that they had acquitted themselves badly. They cheered the pair who had beaten them, who ended up the Hall pairs champions. Turkil and Derris were brothers, Ruathan traders, and Turkil was also the Hall individual wrestling champion. He had just made Journeyman at the end of the last turn, and was pleased to take an interest in the little girls who had fought to valiantly; and the brothers devoted time to teaching the twins more, as well as the help they received from Ferry.

"You're good sparring partners to practice against too," said Derris, "because like us, you think like one. Sure, and don't we always do everything t'gether, and it keeps us on our toes."

"And if yez'll work hard we can bring you up in a turn or two and take those snotty Holderfolk for all their marks!" said Turkil.

"Ferry said much the same," said Raissa. "Journeyman Ferry I should say," she added.

"Sure, and he's not stupid!" said Turkil, "and isn't his friend Kerill a good Ruathan!"

"Our friends Teerima and Miax are Ruathan," said Ranya, "but we think Southern Telgar is pretty good too, you know!"

"Oh you two are, anyhow!" laughed Derris. "Miax, eh? Not prizes to guess who HIS grandsire was, and his lieutenants mostly the old fart's byblows! Sure, and wasn't Fax the worst misbegotten son of the Red Star as ever was, but ye can nivver deny he was clever and strong, for all that he was as dangerous and wicked as a cave full o' tunnel snakes! And doesn't that make your friend own cousin to Lord Jaxom too, and a foine man he is!" his brogue thickened with loyal emotion.

"Best that ever hatched," agreed Turkil, "Holder and Dragonrider and with the cunning of his sire t'steal away his pretty bride right from out o' her brother's imprisonment!"

"Well we might not have such colourful characters as Fax in Southern Telgar," said Raissa, staunchly, "because you can't count Thella as she was never in our end of Telgar, so we don't have any great villains. But our Grandsire taught Pa to fight so's to be ready against Fax if he came so far east, and we know how to make the land look bad and the kine sickly without really harming them permanently just in case."

Turkil nodded.

"I like the way you kids fight your corner," he said, "and I reckon your Granfer was a wise man, f'sure, who should be remembered! And but for F'lar, reckon he'd have needed to use all the tricks at his disposal, for sure, wasn't Fax out to take all of Pern!"

It was a sobering thought.

"That's why Harpers learn to fight, isn't it?" said Ranya, "To fight people like Fax!"

"Well now, it's not quite as direct as that," said Turkil, "but there are people still who have the attitudes Fax instilled so's he could control people better, that education is a waste of time. And most of them are poor fools as have been convinced o' that by him because they don't know they're missing knowing their rights, and some are those as think education is a waste o' time fer underlings, because they don't want them to know their rights. And we have to fight individuals as still say that Harpers sing lies."

"WHAT?" Raissa was taken aback.

"They said Harpers sing lies because Harpers kept alive the tales of Thread, sure, and didn't people want to think it was only stories and beat on Harpers for telling scary tales," Turkil explained, "and even though it's been proved true, some people still believe that Harpers tell lies, because it was repeated so often it's believed. Masterharper Robinton says that's called a meme," he added.

"That's the silliest thing I ever heard!" burst out Raissa.

Turkil laughed cynically.

"And aren't people the silliest beings you'd ever meet, not excluding ovines?" he asked.

Raissa and Ranya exchanged looks.

"SOME people, maybe," admitted Ranya, "but not most of the ones we know!"

"Well, aren't you the lucky ones!" Turkil was gently mocking, and ruffled two flame-topped heads.

He and Derris were nice, decided the twins; and the sort of people you could go to if Meeri was busy. So was Ferry, but he WAS a teacher.

It never occurred to either of them to turn to Irette or Dorasha; for Dorasha was too concerned with her studies to take much notice of the younger ones, and Irette was a figure of some suspicion for trying to lark about with the likes of Vaek even though she was, in the twins' estimation Quite Grown Up. If asked about going to her in a crisis, they would have hooted in derision and pointed out that they were more likely to be extracting HER from a crisis; which would, alas, have been a fair assessment.

The Ruathan brothers had sandy hair rather than a pure red; but it could be loosely described as ginger under certain lighting conditions.

The twins promptly invited them to be honorary members of the Red-headed League.

Derris opened his mouth to try to refuse tactfully the joining of a kids' gang; and Turkil stood on his foot.

"Sure, and I'm thinking ye mean ASSOCIATE members," he said. "People who don't interfere with most meetings and fun but are there as back-up in emergencies and to come to parties sometimes in high Summer and for activities where a Journeyman supervisor is required."

"Oh yes, that sounds perfect!" said Raissa.

As Turkil later explained to Derris, it meant they could keep half a protective eye on these jolly kids without seeming too heavy!


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The Spring Gather was an event looked forward to by all, not least the enthusiastic fans of Turkil and Derris. The cup of the Red-headed League ran over when Derris let slip that he was also entering the jigging contest and had every chance of winning.

"They won't let us stay up for it," said Raissa, mournfully, "but I guess we could pool resources and give you our marks to bet on yourself, couldn't we?"

Derris laughed.

"Don't you kids go gambling with anything but spare marks! I wager you've better things t'spend them on than betting; if you'd a few sixteenths over to spare, I'll do it, but yez'll swear to me first that it's not your last!"

"Oh, we're going to win a packet on you and Turkil wrestling," said Raissa cheerfully. "Miax says you have to play the percentages and bet clever so we're putting it all in his hands."

"Trust a Ruathan to be cunning about marks!" laughed Derris.

Raissa had been busy in her spare time – of which she had precious little, between wrestling matches and bringing on her friends – copying popular songs as neatly as she could. Menolly's music in particular was always popular in Holds; and having it written down meant that anyone who could read music could learn new songs they had not heard! Ranya too had worked in Master Jerint's workshop and had a carefully crafted drum that had just passed muster to be stamped. It was not the value; but the fact of having produced something for herself that filled Ranya with pride.

Yanal had made several small instruments; it was his intention to save up to buy the best woods to make his own instruments. The twins promptly offered him a loan; and he considered it.

"If I need to, I will, but I want it to be from my own efforts if I can," he explained.

They nodded; they could quite understand that.

"But do remember we're loathsomely rich if you ever do need it in a hurry," said Raissa. "We've plenty of stuff for ourselves; we might as well enjoy being rich by spreading it around our friends, and we know you'd want to pay it back 'cos we're proud ourselves and understand that."

Yanal nodded.

"Yes, you don't do it to buy friends, not like some do. And that's WHY I'll accept help if I need it, because it's honestly offered. But you mustn't buy us everything we want, you know! and specially not Petiana, 'cos she has no clue about money and we need to teach her!"

Petiana pulled a rueful face.

"In the Weyr you get given what you need," she said, in her lovely voice. "I guess we never learn to count the cost."

"And you NEED to learn," said Yanal firmly. "Harpers arbitrate; and you can't arbitrate if you don't know the value of land or goods you're arbitrating over and what it means in hours of work, and what's more if you go back and become a Queen Rider, you'll have to understand the accounting of the tithing and stuff."

Petiana was most struck by his arguments.

"Do YOU understand things like what hours of work are worth?" she demanded of the twins, "or do you just get your marks given to you?"

"We WORK for our marks!" said Raissa, indignantly. "We do chores to get our pocket money, and we've been saving up to come here, you know! and we know what wages people have, what some people get in kind in lieu, what a good apple harvest is worth and how the weather affects that, and – and so on! And an average bovine costs eight marks but a good milker who produces twins often is worth up to twelve marks. Things like that."

"I get the idea!" laughed Petiana. "Well, I expect you'll all teach me!"

"We will!" chorused the others.

They skipped off happily to the gather, pausing only to cut reeds to hollow out, to use to propel projectiles of the pith they removed at Journeymen they did not like and the paying girl students on general principles. Life was good!

oOoOo

The paying students squealed satisfactorily when hit by balls of pith from inside the reeds. The apprentices giggled happily and ducked out of sight as the girls screeched about dangerous insects biting.

There was more noise and bustle at a Spring Gather than at the Winter one, everyone enthusiastic about the better weather, willing to mill around more and linger at stalls. The Lord Holder's men hustled away a few who had been lingering too long around the ale tent and who were offering to fight anyone; but most people were good tempered.

Bubbly pies were the first port of call, and faces were soon sticky and faintly blue and happy. The Red-headed League wondered what to do next before the wrestling started.

Then they were hailed.

"Kids! Harpers! Have you a pipe?" the Journeyman Healer had a child upside-down, banging her on the back while the mother wailed. The children ran over, proffering a blow pipe. The Healer nodded, and went on, "Excellent, cut me a few fingers length and wash it well from the green bottle in my bag. One of you – the big lad – hold this child."

Yanal complied; and the Healer poured liquid from the green bottle on a sharp little knife and went to cut the throat of the child, who was now quite blue.

The mother shrieked and went to grab the Healer's hand.

Raissa grabbed the woman before she could make the knife jerk in a fatal cut.

"Oh, oh OH, she's murdering my baby!" screamed the woman.

A crowd gathered, angrily muttering.

"She's bigoted and stupid!" declared Petiana, with as much control of her voice to project as she had yet learned. "The Healer is letting air into the little one's lungs! See, her colour is better now, she was blue! And the pipe holds it open!"

The crowd muttered; they were in an ugly mood and too ignorant for logic.

"The Lord here had a child-harmer executed, let's not let another hurt a precious child!" said one man.

"Oh for shards sake, were you BORN stupid or did you shag your ovines long enough to learn it?" snapped Raissa. "The Healer knows what she is doing, she'd not interfere with the way you low-life set about cleaning necessaries or mucking out ovines or whatever else overtaxes your so-called brains! That's why SHE is a journeyman as her knots declare and you all wear those of low status!"

The apprentices had made a circle about the Healer and the child, now recovered enough to scream. The crowd hesitated to go through well-clad Harper apprentices.

"I need to get her to the Healer Hall to remove the obstruction and take out the tube," said the Healer.

"huh, we need to remove the obstruction of this fardling bunch of bucholic bovine-wits," growled Raissa.

"Yanal, break that stool apart," said Teerima.

Yanal did so; and Teerima took two legs and rapidly beat,

_**DDDD **__Healer needs urgent assistance Harpers need assistance__** DDDD**_

She repeated the message between using the sticks to ward off the crowd.

"Give up the murderer!" howled one of the crowd.

"The babe makes a fardling lot of noise for being murdered!" Petiana cried, scornfully, "Oh, thank goodness!"

Healers were coming and several burly Harpers, including Turkil and Derris, and a selection of Journeymen and Master Sebell.

There was a brief, and rather unseemly affray, and the protesting Holderfolk were routed firmly.

A big Journeyman Healer took over care of the little girl's mother, plainly used to speaking soothingly to hysterical idiots; and she was led off in a calmer state for seeing her child still alive, since the apprentices had excluded her from their protective circle.

"What happened?" demanded Turkil.

"I too would like to know," said the Masterharper.

Raissa explained, quickly.

"AND she jolly nearly killed her own kid in going to grab the Journeyman's hand like that!" she said, indignantly. "She's got no healer training, what possessed her to try to interfere with saving her kiddy's life and screech that nonsense?"

"Fear," said Sebell, "fear that cutting the throat kills – as it can, without it being done with care and knowledge. Most people who die of having their throats cut, as indeed animals do when slaughtered, are cut far enough to open a major blood vessel that pours blood out; but of course, I see you know that, being used to kine. The tracheotomy – as I believe this operation is called – opens the air tube to the lungs, beyond the obstruction that inhibits breathing. You all did well to defend the Healer, and well done whoever sent the drum message."

"That was Teerima," said Raissa, "she's our drum champion."

Sebell nodded.

"I will speak to Lord Groghe about this, and ask him to say a few words at his assizes this afternoon, explaining the necessity of the operation. It might even go in to SOME heads," he added, in a tone that did not seem to think it very likely.

oOoOo

The Red-headed League were glad to have managed to do something virtuous, as their society was dedicated to helping people; and Raissa earnestly explained this to Turkil.

He ruffled her hair.

"You're a good bunch of kids," he said. "Well, that was a nice little fight to limber up; you'll be watching us in an hour!"

"oh YES!" chorused the apprentices.

With no other plans they decided to wander down to the Healer Hall and see how the child was getting on. There they discovered the mother sobbing all over Master Oldive, thanking him and his Healers for saving her baby's life and keeping the horrid rough men at bay.

"When it was us all the time!" said Yanal, disgusted, "and her that made them come!"

Raissa mimed being sick.

"Gushing like that after all the trouble she caused is," she said, 'Grown-ups make you SICK sometimes!"

"Stupid ones, anyway," said Miax, who was privately fairly certain that their own lives had been in some danger from the crowd which meant the wretched woman had almost got them killed. "I guess the kid's all right or she wouldn't be carrying on so and embarrassing the Masterhealer something rotten. Let's have a hopping race back up the ramp and then it'll be time for the wrestling."

This seemed like a good idea and they promptly forgot the woman and her child, arriving back breathless and giggling as the contestants were being announced. Being late, they were at the back. This was no problem for Yanal, already taller than most grown men, but it posed a serious obstacle to the others.

"Huh," said Raissa, "we either go THROUGH or UP!"

"We'll get our ears clipped and get trodden on too if we try to wriggle through legs," said Ranya, "the Marquee behind us is big enough and well enough put up to hold a few little 'uns; you and me can get up there and Yanal can pass the other five."

Accessing the roof of the Gather Marquee was simple to the acrobatic twins; and they pulled while Yanal passed up Shivanny, Petiana, Menorial, Teerima and Miax. The canvas sagged alarmingly, but none of the children was large, and it held.

"Don't jiggle too much however excited you are," warned Raissa, "we don't want guy to fail, or the canvas to rip!"

The other girls and Miax promised faithfully; and they watched the wrestling with baited breath.

The Hold champions were both bigger than Turkil and Derris; but it was quickly apparent that they were not as fast and relied on brute strength. Turkil and Derris used holds on each other for balance as they had seen the twins do; and ducked, weaved and punched, short, fast, brutal jabs of punches. They leaped and kicked and seemed to have three times as many limbs as the Hold champions!

The apprentices cheered themselves hoarse.

It was over in a sudden flurry. Turkil brought one opponent down with a leg sweep, ducking down to hold the man down; and Derris used his brother's back to vault lightly straight into the other man with a body barge. Hall honour was upheld.

oOoOo

It may not be supposed that, however much they refrained from wriggling, the noise the children made would go unnoticed.

Once the bout was over, adult eyes sought the source; and one of Groghe's guards stared in horror.

"You little….. get off of there, you little horrors!" he bellowed, brandishing his ceremonial spear threateningly.

"He'll chase us… you lot follow after," whispered Raissa, and she and Ranya somersaulted off the protesting canvas, running hard as one for a short distance, then splitting in opposite directions.

The guard actually roared in frustration! He turned back to the marquee, but the twins had bought enough time for the others to drop, with Yanal's aid, and mingle invisibly with the crowd.

They all met up for bubbly pies which they felt they had earned.

"How much did we win, Miax?" asked Raissa.

Miax clapped a hand to his head.

"You know, with all that excitement over the choking kid, I plain forgot to bet?" he said.

There was a moment's silence.

"Oh well," said Petiana, "at least we didn't LOSE any."

"And we helped save a life which is more valuable," said Raissa, "though if the kid grows up as much a ninny as her mother, perhaps not THAT valuable."

"But she has the chance to choose not to be a ninny," said Shivanny, "being alive. P'haps it'll make HER want to be a Healer, which will help save other lives."

"We can hope so!" said Raissa, brightening. Shivanny rarely said much, and when she did it was to be taken seriously.

Journeyman Ferry found them eating pies; and cheerfully – and very gently – clipped each of them across the back of the head.

"I promised Lord Groghe's guard that I would punish the red-feathered avians perched on the Marquee," he said sternly. "If you'd ripped it, you'd have been working turns to pay that off!"

"Oh, but we know ropes and canvas from our own Gather Marquee," said Raissa, "it wasn't under too much pressure so long as it had been properly maintained."

"Horrid brat," said Ferry, who had a vision of her conducting a spirited defence to Lord Groghe if the canvas had ripped, accusing him of endangering them with improperly maintained canvas. "Good fight, wasn't it? They deserved that win. And nice work earlier too, by the way. But for that you might have been going home to bed now, rather than just getting a whack across your red heads!"

They grinned at him and offered him bubbly pies.

He sighed.

"Can I maintain a proper distance as a teacher if I scoff bubbly pies with my pupils?" he asked.

Raissa giggled.

"Oh, I think so, Journeyman, but can you maintain your svelte waistline?"

He tweaked an ear in mock anger.

"Cheeky brat… I used to be bubbly pie eating champion in my apprentice days! All right, I'll have a couple, thank you! And assuage my conscience by testing you on drum measures at the same time."

They were all competent enough, even if Teerima was the best, followed closely by Miax.

"And a good lesson of how it has practical, everyday applications," said Ferry. "Learn the spelled alphabet; believe me, you don't know how useful that can be."

The apprentices agreed cheerfully – and stickily – to his advice. Basic theory might not be anyone's favourite class for having the most repetitive lessons, but they DID need it for all the others, and Ferry was a good teacher, indulgent without being soft, who could even make the basics interesting.

Any suggestion he made was as law to his students!


	9. Chapter 9

_Shirleytacs, thank you for the review! yes, this story like Jessenia and Prisca have been beta'd by the excellent Trancefan _

**Chapter 9**

Lord Groghe read a stern homily to the crowd at the assizes about hidebound stupidity.

"Hidebound stupidity killed my father!" he roared. "A simple operation would have saved him! A simple operation saved the life of a small child who had a pebble stuck in her throat, as can happen to any child! If the stupid fools who wanted to lynch a Healer Journeyman for doing her job had succeeded, they would have caused the death of a child as well as that of a valuable Healer! Oh, but they would have felt good about killing someone who performed what THEY could not understand! In my mind the crowd who tried to interfere are almost as bad as anyone who deliberately harms a child! And I say, well done to the staunch Harper Apprentices who helped the Healer – even if they DO take liberties with my Marquee!"

There were giggles from the said apprentices, and faces as red as hair from embarrassment!

oOoOo

The assizes got boring and the children wandered off; the twins wanted to buy gifts for their Impressed relatives. They irritated many stall holders dithering over what to purchase, and settled finally on a pair of gossamer scarves for the girls to tie their hair back under flying helmets, and a pack of dragonpoker cards for R'ban, by Geriana of High Reaches. The scarves were pretty, tie-dyed; C'rya's in the new shade of burnt orange with cream and brown, J'enia's the most vivid shades of green that the stall holder had.

"To match her eyes," said Ranya, earnestly.

"Special presents?" asked the stall holder.

"Yes, our sister and two cousins just Impressed at Igen; our sister is a Green Rider and our cousins Impressed Gold and Bronze," said Raissa proudly.

The stall holder whistled.

"Igen, you say? have you made arrangements for transport?" he twins shook their heads. He went on, "I'm off to Igen Hold; I can go on to transport them from there to the Weyr, if you'll let me give you their carriage as my gift to the new Weyrfolk," he said.

The twins considered, assessing him. He felt all right.

"Thank you," said Raissa. "We'll write a quick note then, and package them, if you can sell us some packing cloth."

"My gift also…. You have paper? Very good!"

It was a spoiled piece with drum exercises on the back, but it suffices for writing messages!

Of course, doing a favour for weyrfolk – especially Queen and Bronze Riders – would do the trader good in the long run, but the twins appreciated it nonetheless.

oOoOo

Having made their purchases, the twins enjoyed themselves watching life go by.

Watching Journeyman Rokayas trying to express his smitten admiration for a golden haired beauty amongst the paying students was almost as good as a play; and they settled themselves nearer to watch avidly and listen to the dialogue.

Rokayas became uncomfortably aware of eyes on his back and swung round in mid stream.

Not that his conversation was very edifying; he was explaining to a bored girl how responsible the task of manning the drums was, instead of taking her up to the seclusion of the drum heights as her intention had been for the attractive Journeyman, the reason she had asked about his duties there. Rokayas was not as mystified by the opposite sex as H'llon had always been, but the isolation of the drum heights when he was not teaching, and the need to think in formulaic phrases had rather stilted his romantic skills.

On turning, Rokayas saw two intrigued – and rather grubby – faces and roared at the twins to get the shards out of there.

They got.

Rokayas did not have the reputation for whacking apprentices with drumsticks that Master Olodkey had, but he was not a man with whom to trifle. The twins respected Rokayas even if he DID act like an idiot for golden curls. The golden curls in question was at least grateful in some sort to the brats in that her outright suggestion that he show her the drumheights sank in to Rokayas and she finally got to have her way with him.

The twins, having withdrawn, were wondering what to do next when Raissa felt a hand on her purse, and turned quickly.

The boy was about her own age and did not look in the least depressed, indeed he looked rather sleek.

"Huh, nothing in there," said Raissa, who kept a second purse on a string round her neck as the twins' stepmother had always taught them. "I know your face; you belong to that smug looking marksman, so I guess that tells me how honest he is too."

The boy pulled a face.

Raissa pulled a worse one.

Things went rapidly downhill from there; and Raissa retired triumphant and jeering from the fray shortly thereafter.

"Should we report him?" asked Ranya.

"Why bother? He'll get caught soon enough; he's lazy and sloppy," said Raissa. "HE's not one pilfering pockets because he has to; he just couldn't spell honest 'cos he's not been brought up to it. Reckon we might tell Journeyman Ferry and Journeyman Turkill 'bout his father though."

They passed it on to Turkil in the end; and the young Journeyman promised to keep an eye on the man.

Children were remarkably perspicacious and it was foolish to ignore such a tip-off.

oOoOo

The twins almost missed the competition to fight on the slippery pole.

Ranya and Raissa exchanged looks; and promptly volunteered to fight the champion , the fight being by means of whacking each other with flock-filled sacks while balancing on a greased pole over a tank of water.

There was much merriment from onlookers.

"Your mother will be shocked when you come home wet!" grinned the showman running the competition.

"No she won't either, she's dead," said Ranya, literally.

"And our stepmother is at home a long way away," added Raissa, "and senior apprentice Meeri will just tell us not to drip on the bed linen."

"Oh, liddle apprentice girls, eh, let out of home for the first time?" said he. "I'll tell him to hit you gentle-like!"

"Don't you tell him any such thing!" said Raissa, indignantly. "We want to win fair and square!"

"I'll have a mark on that 'un!" called a man in the crowd.

"We'll have a mark each on each of us," said Raissa. "WHERE is Miax when we need him to work out the odds?"

There was more general laughter; and the girls found themselves at twenty to one to stay on more then the three hundred heartbeats required to win, or knocking off the man on the pole.

Raissa went first; the pole was slippery, but with her boots off she thought she could feel it well enough with her feet.

"Rule is, stay on, right, fighting only when standing upright?" she checked.

The man on the pole nodded. Raissa realised that he, too, was a trained acrobat; but carrying a little surplus flesh.

He was not as fast as she was either. This game was easier than tumbling for a living, no doubt, with plenty of idiots willing to pay to try, and usually easy to drop in the water. He could afford to lose some tone.

The man's first swing was low; and Raissa jumped over it. Keeping her balance landing was challenging; but her opponent had braced for impacting her legs and was having his own trouble staying upright for his swing having gone further than he expected.

Raissa saw an opening and helped him on his way.

The big man descended into the tank of water with a cry of frustration.

Raissa ran lightly along the pole and jumped down to tumultuous cheers.

Ranya waited for the big man to towel himself off and remount the pole, then she got up, grinning.

The man braced himself more securely this time, and swung higher.

Ranya's strategy was a back walkover to land astride the bar, her hands holding the bag of flock on the bar for extra purchase; then she rose in one movement and flicked the bag up towards her opponent's face.

It looked for a long moment as though he would stay on; but in awful slow motion his balance went and he received a second ducking.

"You little missies leave an acrobat troupe to become Harpers?" asked the showman, in chagrin, handing over the prize, a whole mark for the outlay of a sixteenth to play.

"No, sir, but our stepma left an acrobat troupe to be our foster mother, and then she married Pa," said Raissa.

They had won a sizeable amount for their efforts, through having betted on themselves. The showman would probably more than recoup the two marks less an eighth he had had to pay them in no time, with plenty judging that if two little girls could succeed, they could do so too.

"Does Lord Groghe have a fund for orphans, do you think?" wondered Raissa.

"I don't know. We need to ask someone," said Ranya.

"Let's ask Lord Groghe," said Raissa, who believed in going straight to the person most suited to answer a question regardless of their Rank.

They were fairly disreputable objects by this time, after the effects of climbing, fighting, greasy pole wrestling and bubbly pies; but as they had no mirror, they did not know, or care.

Raissa accosted Lord Groghe as he left the assizes.

"Oh, please, Lord Groghe!" she said.

One of the Lord Holder's men stepped forward.

"Beat it, you grotty urchin!" he said, threateningly.

"I'm not a grotty urchin, I'm a Harper apprentice so the same to you with bells on!" said Raissa, indignantly.

Groghe stepped forward.

"One of the youngsters who helped that Healer, if I'm not mistaken, hmmm?" he said.

"Yes, sir, but it's not about that," said Raissa.

"What is it about, then, young, er, lady?" the Lord Holder asked.

"Sir, do you have an orphan fund?" asked Raissa.

"I do indeed. Why do you wish to know?"

Raissa pushed a clinking pouch at him.

"We won the greasy pole fight – both of us – and we made side bets and we're well enough off so it seems best to pass it on," she gave him a beatific and sticky smile.

Lord Groghe was touched. These little girls had got themselves in such a state for those less fortunate than themselves – he would be glad to find his dear Nataly doing as much! If she were not so quiet and shy a child, doubtless she would too, and she would love to know about these little girls a little younger than she!

Lord Groghe steeled himself to kiss both grubby objects on the forehead.

"Thank you, young apprentices," he said, sincerely. "The female apprentices at the Harper Hall seem all to be a credit to it. A credit indeed!"

"Oh well!" Raissa scuffed a toe on the ground. "You know!"

Groghe patted them both on the head and passed on, feeling full of charity towards the Harpers!

oOoOo

The time was getting on for the evening meal, when the younger apprentices were required to be in for the night. Gather evenings could get rowdy, especially in Spring when a lot of young men were feeling their oats. They paused to wish Derris best of luck in the jigging contest and gave him a mark each, which they were able to tell him they had won – this being the prize itself from the slippery pole wrestling - and ran home to the Harper Hall.

Silvina exclaimed as they put their heads round the door of the Great Hall to see if the supper tables were laid yet.

"What DO you look like!" the Headwoman exclaimed.

"Please, Silvina, how can we know what we look like without a mirror?" asked Raissa.

"Look at each other – you look as bad as each other," said Silvina.

The twins actually stopped to look at each other, as asked, and fell about laughing.

"N-no wonder Lord Groghe's man called us grotty urchins!" giggled Ranya. "You look like nothing on Pern, twin!"

"You're- you're not exactly a painting yourself!" giggled Raissa. "Do we have time to bathe before the meal, Silvina?"

"You will MAKE time to bathe before the meal!" ordered Silvina. "And wash your hair! And I hate to think of how many tears your clothes have under the grime!"

"Oh, we can mend our own tears," said Ranya. "Mother Relda always makes us."

"Thank the blue sky for small mercies," said Silvina, "now be off with you! If anyone comes visiting they'll think we don't have apprentices at all, but a menagerie of wild animals!"

Giggling, the twins retired to the girls' bathing room. It took a while to be sure all the grime was off, and a little more time to pick several scabs satisfactorily, but two shiny faces and four neat plaits descended to eat in plenty of time.

The rest of the Red-headed League were equally well scrubbed, having been caught and sent home a little earlier by Dorasha, who would brook no argument.

"That was a pretty good day," said Yanal, satisfied.

"Mmm… wish we could watch the jigging, though," said Raissa. "I'd think about breaking bounds, only I'm nearly asleep as it is!"

The decision to be virtuous was taken in view of the already tired state of the apprentices and the fact that Shivanny was lolling in her seat snoring gently. They blew in her ear to wake her.

"Wake up, Shivanny, it's time to go to bed," said Teerima.

"Only a Ruathan could come up with something as contradictory as that," said Shivanny, crossly. They toiled thankfully to bed and slept the sleep of tired children after a good day!

oOoOo

It turned out that Derris was a canny better; he had laid all the marks to finish in the top pair.

"Which meant," he grinned, "I didn't have to hang on to beat the Keroonian. Stringy fellow, all nervous energy; I hadn't a hope of outlasting him. He danced long enough to win and he was still dancing on his way to the beer tent to get drunk after."

"Cuh!" said Miax, "takes something to beat a Ruathan at jigging!"

Derris grinned.

It was a sentiment he agreed with.

Turkil also had news.

"That marksman you got me to look out for is a crook all right," he said. "He claims to people he reckons want something for nothing that he has a die to stamp five-mark pieces; and will sell them for a mark apiece."

"That's cheating the crafts!" said Raissa, indignantly.

"It would be, if he was telling the truth," said Turkil. "He shows all these five-mark pieces; then when people pay their marks he switches the bag for a bag of blank mark chips, utterly worthless."

"But why, if he has a die to stamp five-markers?" asked Shivanny.

"He hasn't; it's just part of his story which is a lie," Turkil explained. "It's to make people give him marks for no return, and they can't complain because knowingly buying forgeries is illegal. It's been done in the High Reaches, where they call it the wooden goods game. At least the new ten and hundred mark notes made of paper will stop it being done with higher denominations for the design is going to be too complex to copy, at least not so it's worth the while it would take."

"Has he been apprehended?" asked Petiana.

"He and his son; his son is to be family fostered by one of Lord Groghe's guards and the Marksman is sweeping sawdust in the Hold Woodcraft Hall," grinned Turkil, "since he likes wood so much. The old – er, Lord Groghe – does know how to make the punishment fit the crime, so he does!"

"I like him," said Raissa, "he kissed us even when we looked pretty loathsome."

They told the story of their adventures and how they had money for orphans.

"We could give some of our winnings on Derris to the orphans too," said Yanal. "I for one want the rest for wood, but if we gave perhaps a quarter of our winnings it would add up."

The others voted it a good idea!

The Harper Hall provided most of what they needed, after all; and apart from Yanal they were not ready to craft their own special instruments, so needed nothing extra!

"I wonder if the songs I wrote out sold," said Raissa, and went to find out.

They had sold out; and she pocketed another four marks to add to the orphan fund too!

It was nice to feel that they could earn, because all they earned brought in a proportion to the Harper Hall too, to keep it running. It was a very important thing to keep the Harper Hall running to fight ignorance and stupid ideas, such as those they had encountered even at a big cosmopolitan centre like Fort Hold!

The twins were both very contented.

They could do their bit to do their duty under the Charter, and have cartloads of fun doing it!

**Finis for now**


End file.
